The legislature of the Philippines voted recently to abolish the death

Question

The legislature of the Philippines voted recently to abolish the death penalty. In contrast, the death penalty remains legal in the United States. The difference in the legality of capital punishment demonstrates that the majority of American citizens believe in the death penalty, while the majority of Filipino citizens do not.

Which of the following is an assumption upon which the above argument depends?

A) There are more murders per year in the United States than in the Philippines.

B) The legal status of capital punishment in the United States and the Philippines aligns with how the majority of citizens in those respective countries view the death penalty.

C) There are not strong voices opposing the death penalty in the United States.

D) Most American citizens who believe in the death penalty think that it acts as a deterrent for potential criminals, while most Filipino citizens do not.

E) The legal standard used to determine whether a criminal should be sentenced to the death penalty in the United States is similar to the legal standard used in the Philippines before capital punishment was abolished there.

Main CR Qs link - Main link - https://gmatclub.com/forum/cr-qs-600-700 ... 31508.html

Bunuel · Accepted Answer

OFFICIAL EXPLANATION

The conclusion of the argument is that the majority of American citizens believe in the death penalty while the majority of Filipino citizens do not. This conclusion is based solely on the fact that the death penalty is legal in the United States while it is now illegal in the Philippines. The argument assumes that there is a link between the legal status of capital punishment and the beliefs of the majority of citizens.

(A) While the number of murders per year might influence beliefs about capital punishment, there is certainly no necessary correlation. Moreover, the difference in the number of murders per year in the United States and the Philippines has little relevance without knowing the relative populations of the two countries.

(B) CORRECT.  It is possible that the legal status of capital punishment in the United States and the Philippines does NOT align with how the majority of citizens in those countries view the death penalty. For example, it may be that the governing bodies of one or both countries are out of touch with the views of the populace. The argument assumes that this is NOT the case.

(C) Even if there were strong voices opposing the death penalty in the United States, the argument might still hold. The argument is based on the views of the majority of citizens in the United States, not on all US citizens.

(D) The argument addresses whether or not citizens of the United States and the Philippines believe in the death penalty. The reasons behind those beliefs, as presented in this choice, are irrelevant to the logic of the argument.

(E) The argument is centered on whether or not citizens of the United States and the Philippines believe in the death penalty. While the legal standard used to sentence criminals to the death penalty might impact why individuals hold certain beliefs, it has no impact on the logic of the argument.

dream21 · Answer

In Assumption Question, If you negate the Assumption then the Argument will not hold good.

The argument states that  The difference in the legality of capital
punishment demonstrates that the majority of American citizens believe in the death penalty,
while the majority of Filipino citizens do not.

The assumption in above argument is that the legal status of capital punishment depends on the view of the majority of citizens in the respective countries.

Which is exactly what is mentioned in B. And if we negate B, the argument falls apart.

Hope it helps!!!

minwoswoh · Answer

Assumptions you can Prethink of BEFORE going to the answer choices

- Death Penalty in a country is established by what the majority of the people of those countries think.
- People is entitled to vote in their respective countries to decide whether Death Penalty should be established. 
- There is no Court/Tribunal that decides whether Death Penalty should be established without consulting to the people.

Answer choice B follows the first of these lines of reasonings.

AkshdeepS · Answer

I came down to B and D, and ended up marking D as correct. can,t D be the assumption.

manojsundar1 · Answer

we dont care about what the ppl think after they vote. We just want to find an assumption as to whether the citizens were connected with the legislation or not. even if the philipinos thought against voting,if they are not allowed to express it,then nobody wil get to know..so B is the assumption reqd

nitiny · Answer

PREMISE :- The legislature of the Philippines voted recently to abolish the death penalty. In contrast, the
death penalty remains legal in the United States.

ARGUMENT :-The difference in the legality of capital punishment demonstrates that the majority of American citizens believe in the death penalty,
while the majority of Filipino citizens do not.

A) There are more murders per year in the United States than in the Philippines.
ASSUMPTION :-  b) The legal status of capital punishment in the United States and the Philippines aligns with
how the majority of citizens in those respective countries view the death penalty. 
c) There are not strong voices opposing the death penalty in the United States.
d) Most American citizens who believe in the death penalty think that it acts as a deterrent for
potential criminals, while most Filipino citizens do not.
e) The legal standard used to determine whether a criminal should be sentenced to the death
penalty in the United States is similar to the legal standard used in the Philippines before
capital punishment was abolished there.

aarushi00 · Answer

CONCLUSION: the majority of American citizens believe in the death penalty, while the majority of Filipino citizens do not.

A) Irrelevant.  Murders  are of no concern to us only “death penalty”

B)  Correct.  This option is line with the conclusion of the argument that the legality of CP of respective countries shows the beliefs of the majority of the citizens.

Negation: The legal status of capital punishment in the United States and the Philippines does not align with how the majority of citizens in those respective countries view the death penalty.

Legal status of CP in US and Philippines DO NOT represent the citizen's views. 
Negation of this option destroys the conclusion.

C) Out of scope. We do not have any information regarding this.

D) Irrelevant. It is of no concern to us what the citizens of respective countries  think.

E) Irrelevant. Again it is of no concern to us  how legal standards  are used in respective countries.

Answer B)

VerbalBot · Answer

Automated notice from GMAT Club VerbalBot:

A member just gave Kudos to this thread, showing it’s still useful. I’ve bumped it to the top so more people can benefit. Feel free to add your own questions or solutions.

This post was generated automatically.

The legislature of the Philippines voted recently to abolish the death

Prep Toolkit

Top 5 GMAT Debrief Videos

615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

More than Quant/Verbal Abilities: Speed vs. Accuracy

745 with Only Self-Prep and GMAT Club

From 555 to 765: 210-point Improvement

Perfect 805 Score Debrief by Julia

GMAT Critical Reasoning (CR) Questions

The legislature of the Philippines voted recently to abolish the death

Prep Toolkit

615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

More than Quant/Verbal Abilities: Speed vs. Accuracy

745 with Only Self-Prep and GMAT Club

From 555 to 765: 210-point Improvement

Perfect 805 Score Debrief by Julia