Logical reasoning PrepTest 152 · Section 4 · Question 9

The argument assumes that the benefits of short and long vacations are the same, not that each short vacation is the same. The author's argument is still works if short vacations have varying benefits, as long as those benefits are at least as big as the benefit of a longer vacation.

The argument deals with a vacation strategy that will maximize psychological benefits, but it doesn't state that nothing else will factor into minimizing exhaustion. For this answer to be correct, the conclusion would have to state that anyone taking many shorter vacations will minimize psychological exhaustion, not that it's what they should do to achieve that effect.

Even if different workers may get a different benefit from the short vacations, it could be the case that they all still get a greater benefit from this strategy than taking fewer, longer vacation. If this answer had stated that the benefits of short vs. long vacations differed substantially between workers, then it'd be closer to a correct answer.

While total time off may be more important than the number of vacations, each worker only has a set number of days off. This argument is about how to split up those available vacation days, not how many days they receive to begin with.

Correct. Argument or Facts:
Argument

Valid or Flawed:
Flawed

Question Type:
Errors in Reasoning

Stimulus Summary:
Each vacation lets a worker recharge. Therefore, a larger number of shorter vacations is better than a smaller number of long vacations, if reducing exhaustion is the goal.

Answer Anticipation:
The conclusion here considers two options and picks one over the other. It also establishes a goal—reducing exhaustion. The premise establishes that each vacation reduces psychological exhaustion, but it doesn't state that any length vacation has the same amount of "recharge" to it.

Since the conclusion is about vacations of varying length, but the premise doesn't address how length of vacation impacts charge, there's a jump made by the author. The correct answer will probably bring up that the author overlooks the possibility that a longer vacation might provide a much bigger and longer lasting benefit than shorter vacations.

Answer Explanation:
The only answer left, and, luckily, the correct one. This answer points out that, while both short and long vacations may have the same general benefit, the scale of the psychological benefits on long vacations could outweigh the more frequent benefits that would come from the smaller vacations. If someone who takes a week off recharges for 6 months, but someone who takes 3 days off only recharges for a week, the longer vacations would have the larger psychological benefit.

Key Takeaway:
When a conclusion picks an option to the exclusion of another, the correct answer will generally bring up a difference (or similarity, depending on the question type) of the two options.