Exam LSAT Section 1 Logical Reasoning topic 1 question 329 discussion

Actual exam question from Test Prep's LSAT Section 1 Logical Reasoning

Question #: 329
Topic #: 1

[All LSAT Section 1 Logical Reasoning Questions]

Psychologist: Doctors should never prescribe sedatives for people with insomnia. Most cases of insomnia that psychologists treat are known to be caused by psychological stress. This suggests that insomniacs do not need drugs that alter their biochemistry, but rather need psychotherapy to help them alleviate the stress causing their insomnia.
Each of the following describes a flaw in the psychologist's reasoning EXCEPT:

A. It presumes, without providing warrant, that insomnia contributes to an inability to cope with stress.
B. It fails to consider the possibility that sedatives are the only treatment known to be effective for cases of insomnia not caused by stress.
C. It neglects the possibility that for some people psychotherapy is a completely ineffective treatment for stress.
D. It overlooks the possibility that sedatives could help insomniacs cope with stress.
E. It presumes, without providing justification, that the cases of insomnia psychologists treat are representative of all cases of insomnia.

Show Suggested Answer

Suggested Answer: A 🗳️
One has to wonder if the psychologist went out of his way to construct such a lousy argument. After all, its not easy to cram four distinct flaws into a three- sentence pronouncement, but the psychologists somehow manages to do just that. Sedatives should never be prescribed for insomnia because most cases of insomnia that psychologists treat are caused by stress. Well, theres a first possible flaw, the familiar non-representative sample: The psychologist cant form a general conclusion about how insomnia shouldnt be treated based only on evidence concerning people treated by psychologists; what about those who arent? E. speaks directly to this issue and can therefore be eliminated. Furthermore, the fact that most cases of insomnia are caused by stress doesnt mean that all are, and so perhaps for the non-stress related cases sedatives can be helpful. So again the "never prescribe sedatives" recommendation overreaches, and B. describes this flaw perfectly. Now for the rest of the argument: Because these cases treated by psychologists are mostly caused by stress, insomniacs dont need drugs, but rather psychotherapy to alleviate stress. This sounds a bit self-serving and suspect, but if nothing specific hits you, then its time to check out the remaining choices.

by [deleted] at March 9, 2025, 1:43 p.m.

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