Many scholars deride sociology as a “soft science,” because its subjec

Question

Many scholars deride sociology as a “soft science,” because its subject matter is not as susceptible to scientific truths as the subject matter of the “hard sciences”: chemistry, physics, and biology. However, sociology is science just as much as chemistry, biology, and physics because it follows the scientific method of using controlled experiments to test falsifiable hypotheses.

The conclusion above relies on which of the following assumptions?
A. If the subject matter of a field of study is not susceptible to scientific proof it is not a “hard” science.
B. All fields of study that follow the scientific method are justifiably described as science.
C. Any field of study that does not follow the scientific method is properly deemed a “soft science.”
D. Because sociology uses the scientific method, it follows that its subject matter is susceptible to scientific truths.
E. Since sociology uses controlled experiments to test falsifiable hypotheses it is a “hard science.”

Source: McGraw-Hill's GMAT

nks2611 · Answer

the answer should be B conclusion- sociology follows the scientific method of using controlled experiments to test falsifiable hypotheses, so sociology is science A. here the option says about hard science and also negating it does not harm the conclusion . incorrect B. yes, this makes conclusion to be true and after negating it we see (not All fields of study that follow the scientific method are justifiably described as science) if it is true then sociology could be or not be a science . CORRECT C. this also out of scope , and the properly makes it extreme . incorrect D. it tells just whats stimulus says and also it should be hard science if sociology's subject matter is susceptible to scientific truths. incorrect E. just a premise not affecting the conclusion thanks , correct me if i am missing something :-D

abhimahna · Answer

Argument says sociology is a soft science and not a hard science because of some susceptible to scientific truths issues.

But It concluded that it is still a science because   it follows the scientific method of using controlled experiments to test falsifiable hypotheses.

It means it has assumed that anything that follows such methods is a science.

A. If the subject matter of a field of study is not susceptible to scientific proof it is not a “hard” science.  : We don't know. If it does, it is a science. But we don't know the other way round. 
B. All fields of study that follow the scientific method are justifiably described as science.  : Same as our Pre Thinking 
C. Any field of study that does not follow the scientific method is properly deemed a “soft science.”  Same as A. 
D. Because sociology uses the scientific method, it follows that its subject matter is susceptible to scientific truths.  : Not Inline with our conclusion. 
E. Since sociology uses controlled experiments to test falsifiable hypotheses it is a “hard science.”  : We need to prove for Science and not Hard/Soft science.

abhishekdadarwal2009 · Answer

Many scholars deride sociology as a “soft science,” because its subject matter is not as susceptible to scientific truths as the subject matter of the “hard sciences”: chemistry, physics, and biology. However, sociology is science just as much as chemistry, biology, and physics because it follows the scientific method of using controlled experiments to test falsifiable hypotheses.

The conclusion above relies on which of the following assumptions?
 A. If the subject matter of a field of study is not susceptible to scientific proof it is not a “hard” science. 
 B. All fields of study that follow the scientific method are justifiably described as science. 
 C. Any field of study that does not follow the scientific method is properly deemed a “soft science.”
D. Because sociology uses the scientific method, it follows that its subject matter is susceptible to scientific truths.
E. Since sociology uses controlled experiments to test falsifiable hypotheses it is a “hard science.”

Option B is clear winner because in option C those fields that does not use scintific approach to reach to a conclusion are soft science is wrong because then everything will be classified as soft science and this is not what the argument suggest.

Sejal2002 · Answer

Many scholars deride sociology as a ???soft science,??? because its subject matter is not as susceptible to scientific truths as the subject matter of the ???hard sciences???: chemistry, physics, and biology. However, sociology is science just as much as chemistry, biology, and physics because it follows the scientific method of using controlled experiments to test falsifiable hypotheses.

The conclusion above relies on which of the following assumptions?
A. If the subject matter of a field of study is not susceptible to scientific proof it is not a ???hard??? science.
B. All fields of study that follow the scientific method are justifiably described as science.
C. Any field of study that does not follow the scientific method is properly deemed a ???soft science.???
D. Because sociology uses the scientific method, it follows that its subject matter is susceptible to scientific truths.
E. Since sociology uses controlled experiments to test falsifiable hypotheses it is a ???hard science.

AndrewN · Answer

Hello,  Sejal2002  and others. Remember that no matter what type of CR question you encounter, you want to read the question stem and passage carefully and view the answer choices through the  exact  phrasing of the passage. This question is simple enough, asking us to find the assumption that the conclusion is dependent upon. Many people prefer the negation technique for such questions, a method that I will not go into detail about here. I, however, prefer to find a missing link that fills the logical gap between A, a premise, and C, a conclusion or argument.

The opening line provides us a criterion that  many scholars  use to separate  "soft science"  from  "hard science."  We can refer back to this line as needed.

The second line provides the argument, beginning with the transition,  however . The argument is that  sociology is  science  just as much as  the "hard sciences" listed earlier. Why?  Because it follows the scientific method , which is then defined. I italicized  science  above because this will be important in our assessment of the answer choices.

These double "not"s run contrary to the argument that sociology should be considered a science. That is, we do not want a negated premise as our necessary assumption, since the argument is not based on that negation.  Red light .

Read carefully. Although  all  might seem extreme at first, notice that the passage only holds sociology up an  an example  of a discipline that has been maligned as "soft science." Also, the argument is that  sociology is  science   because it  follows the scientific method , not that it need be considered a "hard science." This information fits in perfectly to connect A to C as I outlined earlier.  Green light .

Notice that a specific type of science,  "soft science,"  has entered the picture again when the argument makes no such distinction. We would want to see something to the effect that  any field... scientific method should NOT be deemed science  to give us a reason to pause, but, of course, you have to go by what you see on the screen.  Red light .

This diverts attention from the argument and points back to the first line, filling in another conclusion instead of providing an assumption that would lead to the argument given at the end of the passage. We want a missing link, not a separate conclusion.  Red light .

Every word has to count, and even though we might logically fill in this gap, the argument given only defines sociology as a  science . Stick to the basics. If the passage says science, go with science, not "hard science."  Red light .

In short, you want to refer back to the passage in CR to avoid making associative mistakes. Sure, the passage discusses "hard science" and "soft science," but then the argument drops that distinction altogether and simply makes a case for why sociology should be called a science. Choice (B) presents the least debatable answer, so that is why we should choose it.

I hope that helps. I would be happy to answer any follow-up questions. As always, good luck with your studies.

- Andrew

AbhishekP220108 · Answer

Ahh, sometimes it becomes really hard to focus and break the argument. The answer was right in front of me, but I still chose the wrong one.

Many scholars deride sociology as a “soft science,” because its subjec

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Many scholars deride sociology as a “soft science,” because its subjec

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