Logical reasoning PrepTest 154 · Section 4 · Question 24

Incorrect. This is too weak to make a difference. "Sometimes" just means at least once, ever; this is not enough to change the likelihood that there is an overall causal relationship between trauma and future cortisol production.

Correct. Argument or Facts:
Argument

Valid or Flawed:
Flawed

Question Type:
Weaken

Stimulus Summary:
People who experienced a trauma but didn't develop PTSD produce more cortisol in response to stress than people who haven't yet experienced a traumatic event. So, experiencing a trauma must affect how much cortisol your body produces in response to stress.

Answer Anticipation:
The argument is causal, alleging that experiencing trauma (without getting PTSD) causes changes in cortisol production. So, treat this the same way as any other causal weakens. Could the cause and effect be reversed? Could there be an alternate cause? Could there be cause without effect, or effect without cause?

Answer Explanation:
Cause and effect reversed! It's not the trauma-without-PTSD that caused the high cortisol production, it's high cortisol production that caused the ability to experience trauma without developing PTSD. This works to weaken the argument. Congratulations, stressed-out future law students, according to this argument your cortisol levels may now shield you against PTSD.

Key Takeaway:
Some students get nervous on questions that use biology terms because they don't understand the science. That's fine, you don't have to! This argument could just as easily be about people who studied ice skating but never injured their ankles having a greater interest in reading about ankle injuries than people who never ice skated at all. The point is the structure, not the subject matter. All you needed to identify here is that you're weakening a causal relationship, meaning your four incorrect answers will either not affect the causal relationship or will strengthen it.

Incorrect. This is probably true and could even be part of an explanation for the phenomenon described here, but it doesn't weaken the argument. It's too far removed from the key causal relationship.

Incorrect. For the purposes of this question, people who do have PTSD are out of scope. We're only comparing traumatized people without PTSD and people without a trauma history.

Incorrect. This strengthens the argument by providing further evidence that a trauma can later cause heightened cortisol production in times of stress.