While acknowledging that there are greater employment opportunities fo

Question

While acknowledging that there are greater employment opportunities for Latin American women in cities than in the countryside, social science theorists have continued to argue that urban migration has unequivocally hurt women’s status.However, the effects of migration are more complex than these theorists presume.For example, effects can vary depending on women’s financial condition and social class.Brazilian women in the lowest socioeconomic class have relatively greater job opportunities and job security in cities than do men of the same class, although there is no compelling evidence that for these women the move to the city is a move out of poverty.Thus, these women may improve their status in relation to men but at the same time may experience no improvement in their economic standing.

In addition, working outside the home, which is more common in urban than in rural areas, helps women in the lowest socioeconomic class make contacts to extend exchange networks-the flow of gifts, loans, or child care from those who currently have access to resources to those who do not.Moreover, poor women working in urban areas actively seek to cultivate long-term employer-employee relations.When an emergency arises that requires greater resources than an exchange network can provide, these women often appeal for and receive aid from their wealthy employers.However, the structure of many poor women’s work-often a labor force of one in an employer’s home-makes it difficult for them to organize to improve their economic conditions in general.

Not surprisingly, then,  Latin American women  in the lowest socioeconomic class differ in their opinions about the effects of urban migration on their lives.Some find urban living, with access to electricity and running water, an improvement and would never return to the countryside.Others, disliking the overcrowding and crime, would return to the countryside if there were work opportunities for them there.Thus, urban life has had both negative and positive impacts on women’s lives.In general, urban migration has not provided economic prosperity or upward mobility for women in the lowest socioeconomic class, despite their intelligent and energetic utilization of the resources available to them.   1 
 C 
 1. In the first paragraph, the author refers to the experiences of Brazilian women most probably in order to

A. support an earlier assertion made by social science theorists about the effects of urban migration
B. provide an example of one area in which urban migration has failed to improve Latin American women’s lives
C. substantiate the claim that the effects of urban migration cannot be easily characterized
D. illustrate the effect that urban migration has had on the economic status of Latin American women
E. compare the effect that urban migration has had on the economic status of Latin American women with its effect on the economic status of Latin American men

2 
 C 
 2. Which of the following best summarizes the main point of the passage?

A. Although Latin American women disagree about the effects urban migration has had on their lives, they agree that migration has provided them with greater opportunities for stable employment outside the home.
B. Although urban migration has improved the quality of life for Latin American women, it has weakened the social support systems that these women enjoyed in rural communities.
C. The effects that urban migration has had on Latin American women’s lives are complex and are best evaluated in light of a range of issues concerning Latin American women’s overall quality of life.
D. The effects of urban migration in Latin America are different for men than they are for women because of the relatively greater job opportunities and job security enjoyed by women in urban areas.
E. Urban migration has led to an increasing disparity between the economic prosperity of Latin American women in the lowest socioeconomic classes and that of women in the higher socioeconomic classes.

3 
 B 
 3. The author mentions which of the following as a disadvantage of urban employment for Latin American women in the lowest socioeconomic group?

A. It is difficult for these women to obtain reliable, long-term employment.
B. It is difficult for these women to organize effectively in order to obtain better wages.
C. It is difficult for these women to find employers who are supportive when emergencies arise.
D. The structure of their jobs makes it difficult for these women to participate in exchange networks.
E. Working in urban areas makes these women more vulnerable to health problems than they would be in rural areas.

4 
 C 
 4. The author of the passage would most likely agree that the opinions of the Latin American women discussed in the third paragraph ( Highlighted ) are influenced by the

A. fact that urban life has provided them with greater opportunities for upward mobility than did rural life
B. relative importance they place on the benefits of urban exchange networks in comparison to those of rural networks.
C. relative importance they place on the conveniences and drawbacks of urban life in comparison to those of rural life
D. difference in the effects of urban migration on women of higher and lower socioeconomic classes
E. difference in the effects of urban migration on men and women of the same social and economic class

5  
 A 
 5. The author of the passage would most likely react to a claim that Latin American women have not made good use of the resources available to them by

A. expressing strong disagreement
B. offering cautious dissent because of specific case studies
C. withholding judgment because of insufficient evidence
D. offering tentative support because of some circumstantial evidence
E. concurring fully with the claim

6  
 A 
 6. It can be inferred that the theorists mentioned in the first paragraph of the passage believe which of the following about the status of Latin American women who migrate from rural to urban areas?

A. Women enjoyed a higher status in the countryside than they do in the city.
B. Urban migration will most likely increase women's status because there are greater employment opportunities in urban than in rural areas.
C. Although urban migration weakens extended-family exchange networks, women's overall status is not greatly affected by migration.
D. Urban migration increases women's status in comparison to that of men of the same class.
E. Women's status in urban areas depends primarily on how marketable their job skills are.

tagheueraquaracer · Answer

Can anyone pls help on below?

How can we refer the " resources " in bold above to? There are too many " resources " keyword in the passage, e.g.
"In addition, working outside the home, which is more common in urban than in rural areas, helps women in the lowest socioeconomic class make contacts to extend exchange networks-the flow of gifts, loans, or child care from those who currently have access to  resources  to those who do not."

"Moreover, poor women working in urban areas actively seek to cultivate long-term employer-employee relations. When an emergency arises that requires greater  resources  than an exchange network can provide, these women often appeal for and receive aid from their wealthy employers."

"Thus, urban life has had both negative and positive impacts on women’s lives.In general, urban migration has not provided economic prosperity or upward mobility for women in the lowest socioeconomic class, despite their intelligent and energetic utilization of the  resources  available to them."

How can we be sure that we use the last one? Thanks!

GMATNinja · Answer

Question 5

To answer this question, we need to find the author's opinion about how well Latin American women have made use of available resources. This opinion is stated in the final sentence:

"In general, urban migration has not provided economic prosperity or upward mobility for women in the lowest socioeconomic class, despite  their intelligent and energetic utilization of the resources available to them . "

This suggests that the author thinks these women have used their resources well. The author definitely disagrees with the claim mentioned in question 5, meaning (C), (D), and (E) cannot be the answer to this question. Now we have to determine the strength of the author's disagreement -- is (A) or (B) the correct answer?

For (B) to be the correct answer to this question, we would need to be able to point to specific case studies that would support the author's cautious dissent.

As we can  only  find the author's view referenced in the final sentence of the passage that's quoted above, we don't have any specific case studies to point to in regards to how well women used the resources available to them.

In addition, the author might "cautiously dissent" with the view of the social scientists mentioned in the first paragraph. However, when specifically discussing the use of resources, the author is not cautious at all -- he/she uses strong language to convey how well the women used the resources available to them.

(B) is out.

Again, the only relevant evidence in the passage is in that last sentence, in which the author firmly states that certain Latin American women use resources well.

Sure, the author doesn't explicitly apply this statement to ALL Latin American women -- but that's not an issue in selecting (A) as the answer. We need to determine how the author would  "most likely"  react to a claim. The only indication we have is that the author would strongly disagree with that claim, and none of the other answers are a "more likely" response. That makes (A) the best answer.

I hope that helps!

Ssj30 · Answer

Read the first line of the first paragraph. The passage is not restricted to Latin American women from the lowest socioeconomic class.

While acknowledging that there are greater employment opportunities for Latin American women in cities than in the countryside...

Also,
 
 Thus, urban life has had both negative and positive impacts on women's lives.

To quote the great Ron Purewal,
GMAC is never wrong. And questioning the OA is a waste of time 100% of the time.

mSKR · Answer

I did mistake in Q5. Later I realize the mistake .

this statement means that urban migration didn't help women in lowest SE class in economic prosperity even these women utilize all available resources? In other words, women didn't progress well but they made well use of resources.

Question asked: 
5. The author of the passage would most likely react to a claim that Latin American women have not made good use of the resources available to them by

Did women made not good use of resources?

Our reply should be :
Yes definitely they made good use of resources. Strong disagreement of not using resources.
So A is correct answer

Now you understand?

tkorzhan18 · Answer

Hi.

Can somebody please explain why answer to q5 is A? There is not indication in the passage whether author will disagree with this claim. What attributes should I consider in the passage to infer option A? 
5. The author of the passage would most likely react to a claim that Latin American women have not made good use of the resources available to them by

A. expressing strong disagreement
B. offering cautious dissent because of specific case studies
C. withholding judgment because of insufficient evidence
D. offering tentative support because of some circumstantial evidence
E. concurring fully with the claim

mSKR · Answer

the question asked is whether women made good use of resources ; not whether women got progress after using these resources.
This below statement contradicts what author mentions in the para.

This statement means women made good use of resources available to them.

A says : The author disagrees that women DIDNOT make good use of resources.- CORRECT

GMATNinja · Answer

Take a look at  this post , and let us know if you have any follow-up questions.

lakshya14 · Answer

Theorist never mentioned about men and women, although in Q6 (A), it says that theorists believe "Women enjoyed a higher status in the countryside than they do in the city, which is the right answer?

bM22 · Answer

Hi  lakshya14 ,

A for Question 6 can inferred from the lines: "While acknowledging that there are greater employment opportunities for  Latin American women  in cities than in the countryside,  social science theorists have continued to argue that urban migration has unequivocally hurt women’s status. ".

Let me know if this helps.
Thanks.

Slava065 · Answer

Q6.

I don`t understand how we can infer that women "enjoyed" more a higher status in countryside than in a city. 
"social science theorists have continued to argue that urban migration has unequivocally hurt women’s status" - I can understand from here only that migration to city was not pleasant for women, but I cannot infer what women enjoyed more.

GMATNinja , please, help with this issue.

GMATNinja · Answer

Question 6 
 
"Enjoyed" has two definitions. The first is how we usually use it in conversation: "take delight or pleasure in." For instance, "I really enjoyed the documentary about whales."

The second is the definition that is used in this passage: "possess and benefit from." For instance, "The residents of Boulder, Colorado enjoy beautiful views of the Rocky Mountains." This doesn't mean that every single Boulder resident actually takes pleasure in the mountain view -- maybe there are some people who detest the mountains. Instead, it just means that this generally good thing is available for the residents to benefit from.

Similarly, saying that women "enjoyed a higher status in the countryside than they do in the city" just means that women  had and could benefit from  this higher status. We don't need to know whether the women felt about the higher status to infer this.

(A) is the correct answer to question 6.

I hope that helps!

dylanl1218 · Answer

Can someone explain this answer? Why each answer choice is wrong. I went with B but that was inccorrect.

The conclusion states that "despite their intelligent and energetic utilization of the resources available to them.". Through the use of the adjectives "intelligent and energetic" we can infer that the author has a positive and strong sentiment towards the efforts of the Latin American Woman mentioned in the passage. So when it comes down to answer choice (A) or (B) you would pick (A) due to the sentiment that's portrayed in the passage.

jabhatta2 · Answer

Hi  GMATNinja  On Q5 -when it comes to utlization of resources - if you read the line in the passage (pink text above) carefully - the women in this sentence ARE NOT LATIN AMERICAN women. In the line above in the passage - "women" is referring to ALL WOMEN.  Furthermore , this sentence above is talking about "WOMEN (IN GENERAL) FROM LOWEST socieconomic class"

If you reveiw the question stem in q5  on the other hand   -- the the women in the question stem are 'LATIN AMERICAN' women from multiple socioeconomic classes (lowest socioeconomic class / 2nd lowest socioeconomic class / 3rd lowest socioeconomic class...)

So its an apples to oranges comparison  on two fronts . 
-- Women in general vs Latin American women 
-- Women from  lowest  sociioeconomic class vs Latin american women from multiple socieconomic classes ..

Hence when it spoke about "utilization of resources" , the passage technically NEVER referred to "LATIN AMERICAN women from different socioeconomic classes ..". The passage refereed to " women from the lowest socio-economic class" only

hence i chose C (this answer choice is closest to --  well the passage never mentioned about this class of women specifically...... )

thoughts ?

GMATNinja · Answer

Question 5 
 
The question asks us how the author " would most likely react " to a given statement. In other words, we're not looking for something that the author has explicitly stated in the passage -- instead, we're thinking about his/her most likely reaction to something that's NOT directly stated in the passage.

So you're right that the author hasn't weighed in on how ALL Latin American women have used the resources available to them. Instead, he/she has talked about a subset of those women -- those from "the lowest socioeconomic class." (Side note: since the entire passage discusses Latin American women, it's fair to assume that the author hasn't suddenly shifted to talk about ALL women in the world, even if he/she doesn't repeat that qualification in every single sentence. It's pretty clear that he/she's discussing Latin American women from the lowest socioeconomic class.)

What does the author think about this subset of Latin American women? He/she has a pretty strong opinion: they have been "intelligent and energetic" in their utilization of resources.

So what would the author  most likely  think about a slightly broader swathe of women? Chances are, he/she would think the same thing! So, if someone said that "Latin American women have not made good use of the resources available to them," the author would most likely express strong disagreement.

(A) is the correct answer to question 5.

I hope that helps!

TrungTiger · Answer

GMATNinja  and  RonPurewal 
Choice A is awful, my feeling. It says that author expresses  STRONG  disagreement" for the claim for  LATIN AMERICAN  women, whereas the author argued for  the lowest socioeconomic class   only . It is really awful because I often see GMAT eliminate  strong  statement.

Moreover, I cannot find a portion in the passage imply that the author seem to apply/ generalize his conclusion (which is for the lowest class) to all LATIN AMERICAN women.

GMATNinja · Answer

Question 5 
 
You're quite right that the author never explicitly generalizes his/her ideas about the lowest-class Latin American women to Latin American women in general.

To answer your very interesting question about this issue, check out  this reply  and let us know whether it helps.

If that doesn't fully clarify things, consider the following: we know the author thinks that  some  Latin American women HAVE made good use of the resources available to them. Based on that, the author  must  disagree with the blanket statement that "Latin American women have not made good use of the resources available to them." Because as long as  some  Latin American women HAVE done so, we can't make a blanket statement saying they HAVEN'T done so.

Notice this doesn't mean the author necessarily thinks  all  Latin American women have made good use of the "resources available to them." It just means the author disagrees with the blanket statement that "Latin American women" haven't made good use of these resources.

For that reason, we can eliminate (E).

I hope that helps!

TrungTiger · Answer

Dear  GMATNinja

Your explanation this time (which is bold below) is exellence- concise and easy understandable. I learn that I should use the logic of “critical reasoning” to deal with such type of question. 
Thank you very much and happy new year.

Posted from my mobile device

Raman109 · Answer

Question 5 drives the key message home. GMAT doesn't miss a single word, so the prepositional phrases are also crucial.

It's easy to miss the last line after, despite the key message here being "urban migration has not provided economic prosperity or upward mobility." But then, this question is not based on that. It's based on specific information in the passage, hidden in the prepositional adverbial phrase "despite their intelligent and energetic utilization of the resources available to them," modifying the previous clause "urban migration has not provided." This makes it difficult to spot. So the key to learning is in such specific information passages, it's a good idea to go back and locate that info in the passage rather than just realizing it on memory or notes.

Elite097 · Answer

KarishmaB   GMATNinja  can you pls help with Q2 explanation and also why not A? and is main point same as conclusion and is it different from primary purpose?

GMATNinja · Answer

Main point, conclusion, and primary purpose are similar concepts that all point to the same question: WHY did the author write this passage?

Choice (A) is probably accurate  --  the passage does tell us that working outside the home is more common in urban than in rural areas and that women working in urban areas actively seek to cultivate long-term employer-employee relations. Is this something the women agree about? I guess we don't REALLY know, but they probably do.

But even if it is true, was the author's primary goal to convince you that (A) is true? Or were these ideas used in support of some other, larger goal?

Choice (C) better explains the broader purpose of the passage: the author wants us to see that this isn't a simple and straiaghtforward topic and that there are lots of different variables and issues to consider.

I hope that helps!

While acknowledging that there are greater employment opportunities fo

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