Logical reasoning PrepTest 135 · Section 4 · Question 3

Question prompt

Travel industry consultant: Several Remaining source text redacted.
Why the credited answer is right

Credited answer: D

The notes below walk through why it fits the stem and how to eliminate the rest.

Argument or Facts

Argument

Valid or Flawed

Flawed

Question Type

Weaken Questions

Stimulus Summary

Airlines cater to business travelers by increasing space, but leisure travelers account for 80% of ticket sales. Thus, airlines are focused on the comfort of the wrong group.

Answer Anticipation

The conclusion in the stimulus is that airlines are focused too much on business travelers. Why? Because leisure travelers - the other type of traveler - make up 80% of ticket sales. The argument, therefore, is suggesting that the airlines should focus on the customers that make up a solid majority of ticket sales.
However, that’s not necessarily the case! Maybe leisure customers don’t make decisions based on comfort - maybe they make decisions solely based on ticket prices or travel schedules. Additionally, maybe those customers don’t make up most of the profit that airlines see, and so attracting more of them doesn’t have as much of an impact as attracting business customers. A correct answer, therefore, will likely highlight either that business passengers result in higher profits, or leisure passengers won’t be swayed by the actions of airlines.

Answer choices

  1. A
    Business travelers often make Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice A is not credited
    While this answer presents evidence that a focus on business customers will attract their business, it doesn’t provide any evidence as to whether that’s a good idea for airlines! This doesn’t undermine the conclusion because this focus, while effective at attracting business passengers, might not be good for the airline.
  2. B
    Some airlines have indicated Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice B is not credited
    This alteration could be to give business passengers more room and leisure passengers less. Without information on the impact of these changes, it’s hard to evaluate whether this answer strengthens or weakens the argument.
  3. C
    Sleeping in comfort during Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice C is not credited
    The argument is about space, not sleeping in comfort. Since the stimulus doesn’t connect those two ideas, this answer is out of scope.
  4. D
    A far greater proportion Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice D matches the stem
    If the business travelers make up a “far greater” proportion of revenue, then focusing on them might not be such a bad idea, even if they do make up only 20% of ticket sales. This answer undermines the connection between ticket sales and important customers by raising another consideration - generated revenue.
  5. E
    Most leisure travelers buy Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice E is not credited
    This answer suggests that focusing on business class passenger comfort wouldn’t get in the way of the decision-making process for leisure passengers, as those passengers might not make decisions based on legroom but rather based on ticket price.

What this tests

Question analytics

Based on historical answer selection rates for this question.

Answer choice distribution

  1. A 2%
  2. B 1%
  3. C 2%
  4. D Credited 91%
  5. E 3%

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Discussion

  • D v E 3 replies

    Started by #JW

  • Ans Choice B 2 replies

    Started by ankita96

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