Logical reasoning PrepTest 120 · Section 1 · Question 15

Incorrect. This answer is about finding balance between two qualities, and knowing that a positive feature might mean a negative feature. Since this answer doesn't conclude that it's fine to prefer location over hours, it's not parallel.

Incorrect. This answer isn't about knowing what you're getting, it's about accepting that your friends might not be pointing out your bad traits.

Incorrect. This answer is about the best way to go about learning a new skill, not knowing what you're getting yourself into.

Correct. Argument or Facts:
Argument

Valid or Flawed:
Flawed

Question Type:
Parallel Reasoning

Stimulus Summary:
Reputation and status sometimes explain a product's popularity, not quality. So it's fine to buy status, but make sure it's what you want.

Answer Anticipation:
Many Parallel Reasoning questions feature conditional logic, or a common type of reasoning, or a common error in reasoning. This stimulus has none of those!

Instead, it describes a situation and draws a judgment. In that way, it's similar to a principle question—and so let's approach this one by coming up with a principle underlying the situation as described, and then find an answer that matches up with it.

The summary itself is a pretty good reflection of the principle—the stimulus is pretty general and abstract. From there, we should try to remove the concepts that are specific to that situation—e.g., reputation and popularity.

If we do that, we end up with something like:
Sometimes, an item has one quality instead of another you might expect. And it's fine to prefer the item for that quality, as long as you know what you're getting.

Answer Explanation:
This answer reflects the same principle as the stimulus. A person is sometimes charming instead of virtuous, and it's fine to befriend that person as long as you know what you're getting (i.e., not expecting the person to be good and loyal).

Key Takeaway:
Some Parallel Reasoning questions are best approached by coming up with a principle that underlies the stimulus. This is generally the case when the stimulus describes a situation without using conditionals, common methods of reasoning, or common errors in reasoning.

Incorrect. This answer is about suppressing a feeling because it ruins an experience, which has no parallel in the stimulus.