Research has Shown that Impoverished People in this Country Buy Unhealthy Snack Foods

Question: Research has shown that impoverished people in this country buy unhealthy snack foods on a daily basis because this kind of food is generally less expensive than more nutritious food. Therefore, improving the quality of one’s diet is a crucial step for rising out of poverty.

Which of the following choices uses reasoning that most clearly parallels the reasoning in the argument above?

1. A new study clearly demonstrates that a weed killer containing the ingredient Zorphon will make pets sick even if those pets have had minimal exposure to the weed killer. Therefore, people with pets should choose weed killers that do not contain any chemicals.
2. The size of the federal deficit has been unnecessarily increased by the unchecked expenditures of the previous administration. Therefore, any political party wishing to bring the deficit back down to manageable levels would be wise to avoid the economic policies of the previous administration.
3. It is well known that many students at state colleges take up residency in the state just to secure discounted tuition. Discounts of this sort adversely affect the financial standing of many colleges and should be reserved for students who have attended secondary school in the state.
4. Anyone looking to secure a home mortgage these days must avoid banks that advertise their low rates on the Internet, because all the banks that have recently been investigated for improper banking procedures have used the Internet to run ads that promote unrealistically low rates.
5. A recent study shows that people who drive to work do less weekend driving than car owners who take public transportation to work. To reduce the number of people who drive to work when they could be taking public transportation, buses and subways should be more readily available during the weekend.

“Research has shown that impoverished people in this country buy unhealthy snack foods” – is a GMAT critical reasoning topic. This GMAT Critical Reasoning topic has been taken from the book ‘Manhattan prep GMAT Critical Reasoning 6th Edition’. In this particular topic, candidates are asked to select the option that makes the same error as the author. In this question, the candidates need to provide an option that supports the error provided in the passage. GMAT critical reasoning tests the logical and analytical skills of the candidates. Critical reasoning in GMAT requires candidates to find the argument's strengths and weaknesses or the logical flaw in the argument.  The GMAT CR section contains 10 -13 GMAT critical reasoning questions out of 36 GMAT verbal questions.

Answer: D
Explanation: This is a GMAT critical reasoning question. An assumption is an implied hypothesis. So we are looking for something that is implied in the argument. In case it is wrong or maybe disable the argument.

The statement states- Research has shown that impoverished people in this country buy unhealthy snack foods on a daily basis because this kind of food is generally less expensive than more nutritious food. Therefore, improving the quality of one’s diet is a crucial step for rising out of poverty.

Let us check the following choices using reasoning that most clearly parallels the reasoning in the argument above:

Option A: Incorrect 

Here in Option A, it has been stated that a weed killer with Zorphon will lead to sick pets. So, if anyone doesn’t want sick pets, they must not get a weed killer with any chemicals. Hence this argument is irrelevant. 

Option B: Incorrect 

The evidence here is that federal deficit is an unnecessary expenditure. It has led B to a rising deficit. The conclusion advises against any policies of the last administration, not just unnecessary expenditures. Hence this argument is irrelevant. 

Option C: Incorrect

This argument states that a particular policy grants discounted tuition to students. They have only recently lived in a state that should be changed. There is no cause-and-effect argument. Hence this argument is irrelevant. 

Option D: Correct 

The argument states that they avoid banks that advertise their low rates on the Internet to secure a home mortgage. This is because all the banks, that have been studied for improper banking procedures, have used the Internet to run ads that upgrade unrealistically low rates. Hence option D is the correct answer. 

Option E: Incorrect

The evidence is that people who drive to work drive less on the weekends than people using public transportation to work. This does not set up a clear cause-and-effect argument. Hence this argument is irrelevant.

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