Q2 - Depression in Nursing Homes

[geogonzalez3]

need help with this question - please explain

[ohthatpatrick]

Thanks for bringing this question to the forum!

Question Type: Inference - Most Strongly Support

Inference is testing us on our ability to combine two or more of the facts we're given to safely output some synthesis.

The synthesis almost always comes via 4 types of language:
- conditional
- causal
- contrast
- quantitative / definitional

"Most Strongly Support" usually works with Causal and Contrast language.

Reading this stimulus, there are only two facts:
- depression sucks at nursing homes (shocker)
- in a study, correlation between pets and lower rates of depression

There is a temptation to draw a Causal inference, but you're not supposed to assume causality from a mere correlation. Nonetheless, correlations STRENGTHEN a picture of causality, so it's not unreasonable to say "the study SUGGESTS that bonding with pets MAY have some positive effect on depression".

But I would go to the answers expecting some overstatements in the same direction.

Beware trappy wording in answers (too strong / comparisons / out of scope / opposite)

(A) Comparison and extreme. "More ____ than any other". We can't prove this.

(B) Extreme. "Best"?

(C) Soft wording, "may result". Sure ... this gets at the Causal hint we're given by the correlation found in the recent study.

(D) Extreme. "essential"?

(E) Extreme. "would eliminate"?

In case you haven't been paying due attention to strong and comparative wording in Inference / Nec Assump / Reading Comp, look out for it! On easier questions (such as a #2), strong language is the easiest way to make quick eliminations.

If you had shown me this question and removed the stimulus, I would have definitely, definitely guessed (C).

If you're not harnessing that power (it's not a formula, but a funnel of likelihood), you're probably spending more brainpower than you should be on some questions.

[DorisW471]

Thanks for bringing this question to the forum!

Question Type: Inference - Most Strongly Support

Inference is testing us on our ability to combine two or more of the facts we're given to safely output some synthesis.

The synthesis almost always comes via 4 types of language:
- conditional
- causal
- contrast
- quantitative / definitional

"Most Strongly Support" usually works with Causal and Contrast language.

Reading this stimulus, there are only two facts:
- depression sucks at nursing homes (shocker)
- in a study, correlation between pets and lower rates of depression

There is a temptation to draw a Causal inference, but you're not supposed to assume causality from a mere correlation. Nonetheless, correlations STRENGTHEN a picture of causality, so it's not unreasonable to say "the study SUGGESTS that bonding with pets MAY have some positive effect on depression".

But I would go to the answers expecting some overstatements in the same direction.

Beware trappy wording in answers (too strong / comparisons / out of scope / opposite)

(A) Comparison and extreme. "More ____ than any other". We can't prove this.

(B) Extreme. "Best"?

(C) Soft wording, "may result". Sure ... this gets at the Causal hint we're given by the correlation found in the recent study.

(D) Extreme. "essential"?

(E) Extreme. "would eliminate"?

In case you haven't been paying due attention to strong and comparative wording in Inference / Nec Assump / Reading Comp, look out for it! On easier questions (such as a #2), strong language is the easiest way to make quick eliminations.

If you had shown me this question and removed the stimulus, I would have definitely, definitely guessed (C).

If you're not harnessing that power (it's not a formula, but a funnel of likelihood), you're probably spending more brainpower than you should be on some questions.

Hi, Patrick. I have a further question about this argument. As to answer choice (D), I've seen other people arguing that this "essential" means "necessary" , is it? Hope you can reply, thanks!

[Laura Damone]

Hi there! Patrick is away so I'm answering in his place. You are correct: "essential" means "necessary." Any time you see the word "essential" on the LSAT, you can think of it as saying "necessary,"

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