Logical reasoning PrepTest 157 · Section 3 · Question 2

Question prompt

Banking industry visionaries foresee Remaining source text redacted.
Why the credited answer is right

Credited answer: B

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

Argument or Facts

Argument

Valid or Flawed

Flawed

Strategy Overview

Identify the conclusion Identify the premises Make sure the premises support the identified conclusion, and that the identified conclusion does not support anything else in the passage Find the answer choice that restates the conclusion

Answer Anticipation

Our job is straightforward on Main Point questions: find the main conclusion the author wants to convey. When searching for main conclusions, it helps to look for words associated with conclusions — like "therefore," "hence," and "thus" — or "shift" words — like "however," "but," and "nevertheless." Authors often use these words to introduce conclusions. We can also look for tonal phrases, opinions, and predictions, as these rhetorical devices often appear in conclusions. In this case, the "shift" word "But" appears in the second sentence. That suggests that the claim that online and telephonic banking "may be more of a paradise for banks than for their customers" is the main conclusion. This statement also expresses tone. The author opines that online and telephonic banking "may be more of a paradise for banks." These tonal phrases ("more of a paradise") and opinions often show up in the argument's main conclusions. To confirm that this sentence is the conclusion, we need to identify the argument's premises and verify that they all support the identified conclusion. So, why does this author believe online and telephonic banking "may be more of a paradise for banks than for their customers"? The next sentence gives us a reason — banks will eliminate offices and customer service, so customers will have to "serve as their own tellers" and "pay more transaction fees for their efforts." In other words, online and telephonic banking will be better for the banks because they'll save money on offices and employees while getting more transaction fees from their customers. Customers, meanwhile, have to do stuff themselves and pay those fees. So, the claim that online and telephonic banking "may be more of a paradise for banks than for their customers" has support, making it a conclusion. And because that claim doesn't support any other statement in this passage, we know it's the main conclusion. Now, we just need to look for an answer choice that expresses the same idea as that main conclusion.

Answer choices

  1. A
    In the near future, Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice A is not credited

    This doesn't match our identified conclusion, so it's a quick cross-off. Besides, this is a misstatement of the first sentence. Bank visionaries "foresee" (predict) this type of banking, but that doesn't mean these banks will soon exist or will ever come to fruition. This argument is about a hypothetical form of banking, not a near-future one.

  2. B
    Enabling bank customers to Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice B matches the stem

    This expresses the same idea as the main conclusion we identified, so we can select it and advance to the following question.

  3. C
    As banks eliminate branch Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice C is not credited

    This doesn't match our identified conclusion, so it's a quick cross-off. Besides, this restates the last sentence in the passage. That sentence is a premise to the argument's main conclusion. According to the argument, the fact that customers will have to serve as their own tellers and pay more fees is why online and telephonic banking "may be more of a paradise for banks than for their customers." In other words, this sentence makes the argument's prediction that online and telephonic will be better for banks than customers more convincing.

  4. D
    Eliminating branch offices and Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice D is not credited

    This doesn't match our identified conclusion, so it's a quick cross-off. Besides, this is an assumption the author makes. The author asserts that eliminating branch offices and customer-service employees is why online and telephonic banking "may be more of a paradise for banks than for their customers." In order for that premise and conclusion to have a logical relationship, the author must believe that eliminating these branches and employees is good for the banking industry. In other words, this answer choice reflects an unstated belief the author has when making this argument. This unstated belief cannot be the argument's conclusion. The conclusion must be stated in the argument. And, the conclusion takes the premise and assumption for granted to assert that online and telephonic will be better for banks than customers.

  5. E
    Enabling customers to transact Remaining source text redacted.
    Why choice E is not credited

    Like (D), this is an assumption the author makes. The author discussses the possible switch to online and telephonic banking in the first sentence. In the last sentence, the author says that this new type of banking will result in banks eliminating branch offices and customer-service employees. In order to get from the first sentence to the third, the author must believe that online and telephonic banking will allow the banks to cut offices and employees. The author doesn't say this out loud, but it's implied by the author's jump from the first to the third sentence. In other words, this answer choice reflects an unstated belief the author has when making this argument. This unstated belief cannot be the argument's conclusion. The conclusion must be stated in the argument. And, the conclusion takes the premises and this assumption for granted to assert that online and telephonic will be better for banks than customers.

Question analytics

Based on historical answer selection rates for this question.

Answer choice distribution

  1. A 4%
  2. B Credited 81%
  3. C 10%
  4. D 4%
  5. E 2%

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