In a survey of high school students, 35 percent admitted to having lie

Question

In a survey of high school students, 35 percent admitted to having lied to their parents at least once in the past month. However, the survey may underestimate the percentage of high school students who lie to their parents because _____________.

Which of the following best completes the passage above?

(A) some normally honest students taking the survey might have claimed on the survey to actually be dishonest
(B) some students who claimed on the survey to have lied to their parents only once might have actually lied to their parents many more times in the past month
(C) some students who claimed on the survey that they have lied to their parents at least once in the past month may have been answering honestly
(D) some dishonest students taking the survey might have claimed on the survey to be honest
(E) some students who are not high school students have probably lied to their parents at least once in the past month

Abhishek009 · Accepted Answer

at least once means = Once , twice , thrice ...

Which of the following best completes the passage above?

(B) some students who claimed on the survey to have lied to their parents only once might have actually lied to their parents many more times in the past month

The passage talks about telling lie at least once ( hence it can be safely be presumed that it includes students telling lies more than once ) , this statement merely repeats what is already given in the passage in different words and no additional information is provided to carry forward the discussion.

Even if the students lied more than once it doesn't underestimate the survey ( Because we considered - At least once and included in the group students who lied more than once)

(D) some dishonest students taking the survey might have claimed on the survey to be honest

If the same group of dishonest students who lied to their parents ( At least once ) provided incorrect statement in the survey then it will clearly affect the results of the survey...

noTh1ng · Answer

I understand that D is correct, but what is wrong with B?

If those students have lied many more times than stated, then the survey definitely underestimates the percentage of students who lie to their parents?

WaterFlowsUp · Answer

The question is not about how many times an individual has lied but how many different individualhas lied at least once.

souvik101990 · Answer

Abhishek009  - Nicely done.

ENGRTOMBA2018 · Answer

The given argument does not deal with the actual number of lies but with % of students. This number will remain the same whether the students lie once or more.

Example, Lets say in a class of 10 students, 6 have lied to their parents . So the % of students who have reported to have lied is going to stay at 60% whether they lie once or more. The argument does not 'count' the number of lies.

GMATTheMonster · Answer

The survey may  underestimate . This is the Biggest Hint here, It is urging us to select answer which solves this underestimating mystery! D it is!

OptimusPrepJanielle · Answer

In a survey of high school students, 35 percent admitted to having lied to their parents at least once in the past month. However, the survey may underestimate the percentage of high school students who lie to their parents because _____________.

Which of the following best completes the passage above?

(A) some normally honest students taking the survey might have claimed on the survey to actually be dishonest
 If more claimed to be dishonest than there actually were, the survey would possibly overestimate, not underestimate the percentage 
(B) some students who claimed on the survey to have lied to their parents only once might have actually lied to their parents many more times in the past month  the survey is for students who have lied at least once 
(C) some students who claimed on the survey that they have lied to their parents at least once in the past month may have been answering honestly  If they were answering honestly the survey wouldn't be underestimated 
 (D)  some dishonest students taking the survey might have claimed on the survey to be honest If they claimed to be honest but weren't this would explain the underestimation 
(E) some students who are not high school students have probably lied to their parents at least once in the past month  students who are not high school students are out of scope

BillyZ · Answer

Correct Answer: D

This strengthen question asks us to complete the passage by providing a reason that the survey may underestimate the percentage of high school students who lie to their parents (the conclusion). Accurate survey results depend on honest answers; answer choice (D), the correct answer, offers why the survey results may be inaccurate ' that some students who did lie to their parents did not admit to the act on the survey. Answer (A) would show that the survey OVER-estimated the number of dishonest students. Answers (B) and (E) are out of scope of the conclusion; we do not care about the number of times dishonest students lied, nor do we care about students other than high school students. Answer (C) is incorrect because it would actually show that the survey is accurate, and therefore weaken the conclusion.

Nightmare007 · Answer

The question asks us whether they lied or not . B talks about the number of times they lied.

egmat · Answer

Let's break this question down step by step.

The Setup:  A survey found that  35%  of high school students admitted to lying to their parents. The argument then says the survey may UNDERESTIMATE the true percentage. We need to find a reason WHY the real number could be higher than  35% .

Key Insight:  Think about what the survey is measuring — dishonesty. And how is it measuring it? By asking students to honestly report their own dishonesty. Do you see the irony? Students who lie to their parents might also lie on the survey!

Now let's evaluate the choices:

(A)  says honest students might have falsely claimed to be dishonest. This would OVERESTIMATE the percentage (inflating the  35% ),  not  underestimate it.  Goes the wrong direction.

(B)  says some students lied more than once rather than just once. But the survey already counts these students — it asks about lying 'at least once.' Whether they lied once or fifty times, they're already in the  35% .  This doesn't change the count.

(C)  says some students who admitted lying were being truthful. This just confirms the survey is accurate for those students. It doesn't suggest the number is too low.

(D)  says dishonest students might have claimed on the survey to be honest. This is the winner. If students who DO lie to their parents also lied ON THE SURVEY by saying they don't lie, they wouldn't be counted in the  35% . The true percentage would  therefore  be higher than reported. This directly explains the underestimation.

(E)  talks about non-high-school students. These people are outside the scope of the survey entirely, so they're irrelevant.

Key Takeaway:  When a survey relies on  self-reporting of a negative behavior , always consider that the very trait being measured (dishonesty) could affect the reliability of the responses themselves.

Answer: D

In a survey of high school students, 35 percent admitted to having lie

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In a survey of high school students, 35 percent admitted to having lie

Prep Toolkit

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