#6 - Principle: If someone makes an error, it is unethical

[Administrator]

Please post your questions below!

[lilRio]

Dear Powerscore,

The question stem for #6 reads "Which one of the following, if true, most helps to justify the above application of the principle?" From what I have read in the PS bibles, this is a strengthen question. However, the correct answer is more of an application of the principle than a strengthen question. May I please ask for clarification of what kind of question stem is this?

-MMM

[Jeremy Press]

Hi MMM,

You are correct to read this as a Strengthen question. But it's a little different than your normal Strengthen question, because instead of strengthening a general argument, what we're asked to strengthen is, more specifically, an "application" of a principle. Think of it this way: the principle provides the rule (or, the law for the case). The application lays out some of the facts of the case, and a judgment that is supposed to be based on the rule. In a sense, the application is sort of like a judge using the rule, plus some facts, to decide the case. But, in all questions like these, the application will be missing some fact (or facts) that, if we knew them, would make us more sure that the judge actually followed the rule the way she should.

In this question, the rule is that "if someone makes an error, it is unethical for a coworker to use that error to his or her own advantage." In the application we know that the coworker (Mark) used email addresses to his own advantage, which sounds like it should lead to the conclusion that Mark was unethical. But, notice that this specific rule only applies "if someone makes an error." So, we can't tell from the application whether someone (specifically Rashmi) made an error. We need to know that to make sure we can apply the rule. Answer choice D makes us more sure we can apply the rule, because it gives us a fact that fits the notion of Rashmi making an error: she "unintentionally left the [email addresses] visible in an e-mail that she sent to both Mark and her clients." Thus, the fact in answer choice D strengthens the application by making us more sure that the application followed the rule in its entirety.

I hope this helps!

[lilRio]

Yes, this is a great explanation. Thank you

[g_lawyered]

Hi PS,
I had a different thought process to this question, which lead me to have 2 incorrect answer choices as contenders. My line of reasoning was that I had to Strengthen the application that Mark committed the error for it to strengthen the principle (Error Unethical for that coworker to use error for advantage). I understood that the person that committed the error & acted unethically had to be the same person). For this reason, I prephrased that I need answer that showed the Mark committed error unethical for Mark (the coworker) to use error for his advantage). With this reasoning, I had (A) & (B) as contenders and I eliminated (D).
I chose (A) because I understood the error to be made by Mark because he copied R's emails. Which makes the principle apply since it triggers the sufficient condition: Error Unethical to use error for advantage. Why is this incorrect?

I contemplated (B) for the same reason I thought (A) was correct. But I eliminated it because it introduced another coworker that did the error (Mark didn't directly do the error, the coworker helped Mark & Mark took advantage from that coworker to hurt R). Is this why (B) is incorrect? Or what makes (B) incorrect?

I read from the explanation, that R needed to commit the error in order for Mark to act unethically. I completely missed this. How or where in the stimulus do we get information that another person (Not Mark himself) needs to commit the error? Instead of assuming that Mark himself needs to commit the error for the principle to apply (trigger the sufficient condition). Can someone please expand on this?
Thanks in advance!

[katehos]

Hi g_lawyered!

In the first sentence of the stimulus, you can find the information that another person needs to commit the error. This sentence says that if someone (person A) makes an error, then it is unethical for a coworker (person B) to use that error to their own advantage!

Hope that helps!
Kate