LSAT Explanation PT 30, S2, Q17: Only a very small percentage of

LSAT Question Stem

Which one of the following points out a flaw committed in the argument? 

Logical Reasoning Question Type

This is a Flaw question. 

Correct Answer

The correct answer to this question is B. 

LSAT Question Complete Explanation

First, let's analyze the argument in the passage. The argument states that only a small percentage of people from the service professions ever become board members of the 600 largest North American corporations. From this, the author concludes that people from the service professions are underrepresented in the most important corporate boardrooms in North America. In this argument, the premise is the fact about the small percentage of service professionals becoming board members, and the conclusion is that they are underrepresented in important boardrooms.

To make this more understandable, let's use a simple example. Imagine there are 100 teachers in a town, and only 5 of them ever become members of the town's council. If we conclude that teachers are underrepresented in the town council based on this information alone, we might be committing the same flaw as in the passage.

Now let's come up with an "Evaluate" question about the argument: "What is the percentage of board members who are from the service professions?"

The question type of this problem is Flaw, and it's asking us to identify the flaw committed in the argument. The correct answer is B.

a) This answer choice claims that 600 is too small a sample size to reach a conclusion about representation. However, the argument is specifically about the largest corporations, and 600 might be a significant sample size in that context. This answer choice does not address the main flaw in the argument.

b) This is the correct answer. It points out that the percentage of people from the service professions who serve on the boards of the 600 largest North American corporations doesn't reveal much about the percentage of board members who are from the service professions. The argument confuses the percentage of service professionals becoming board members with their actual representation on the boards.

c) This answer choice argues that it's a mistake to consider the 600 largest North American corporations as typical of corporate boardrooms generally. However, the argument is specifically about the most important boardrooms, not the general ones. This answer choice does not address the main flaw in the argument.

d) This answer choice states that it's irrelevant to smaller corporations whether the largest corporations would agree to have significant numbers of service professionals on their boards. However, the argument is about the representation of service professionals in the most important boardrooms, not about the relevance to smaller corporations. This answer choice does not address the main flaw in the argument.

e) This answer choice claims that the presence of service professionals on a corporate board doesn't necessarily imply that the corporation will be more socially responsible. However, this point is irrelevant to the argument, which is about the representation of service professionals in important boardrooms, not about the social responsibility of corporations. This answer choice does not address the main flaw in the argument.