LSAT Explanation PT 24, S3, Q17: The widespread staff reductions in a

LSAT Question Stem

The argument in the passage proceeds by doing which one of the following? 

Logical Reasoning Question Type

This is a Method of Reasoning question. 

Correct Answer

The correct answer to this question is A. 

LSAT Question Complete Explanation

The passage presents an argument about the spending habits of people who still have their jobs despite widespread staff reductions in a certain region. The argument's structure is as follows:

Premise: There has been no unusual increase in the amount of money held by those people in savings accounts.

Conclusion: Actual spending by such people is undiminished.

The argument assumes that if people with jobs were cutting back on new purchases, there would be an unusual increase in their savings accounts. Since there is no such increase, the argument concludes that their spending has not been affected.

The question type is Method of Reasoning (MOR), which means we need to identify how the argument proceeds in the passage. Let's examine each answer choice in detail.

a) This answer choice correctly describes the argument's method of reasoning. The "expected consequence" refers to an unusual increase in savings accounts, and the "supposed development" refers to the idea that people with jobs are cutting back on new purchases. The argument concludes that since the expected consequence did not occur (no unusual increase in savings accounts), the supposed development (cutting back on new purchases) did not take place.

b) This answer choice doesn't match the argument's structure. The passage doesn't discuss two predictable consequences of a certain kind of behavior, nor does it conclude that the observed occurrence cannot be a consequence of such behavior.

c) This answer choice is not relevant to the argument. The passage doesn't argue that people's economic behavior is guided by economic self-interest or that only misinformation or error will cause them to engage in harmful economic behavior.

d) This answer choice doesn't apply to the argument. The passage doesn't present two alternative developments that exhaust all plausible possibilities.

e) This answer choice is incorrect because the passage doesn't conclude that since the evidence concerning a supposed change is ambiguous, it is most likely that no change is taking place. The argument is actually more definitive, stating that actual spending is undiminished due to the lack of an unusual increase in savings accounts.

In conclusion, the correct answer is choice A. It accurately reflects the argument's method of reasoning by concluding that since an expected consequence of a supposed development did not occur, that development itself did not take place.