#24 - Global Reference, Must Be True, Author's Perspective

[ntusss]

Hi,

I have trouble eliminating (B) and (D).

(B) "causal factors ... unique to each case". The passage says that groupthink involves several factors, and since the author doesn't suggest that they all occur in groupthink, I thought this could be support for (B).

(D) It seems like groupthink would lead that group to excessive optimism and closed-mindedness, which made me think that maybe once groupthink is formed, they wouldn't be affected by outside information.

I would appreciate if someone can help with the elimination of (B) and (D). Thanks!

[emilyrk]

Hi! I picked A on this question, but I can now see why it is not a good answer. Is this because A is too strong in saying that "Groupthink occurs on ALL strongly cohesive groups...?"

E threw me off because of the phrase "On balance." What does this phrase mean in the context of the passage?

[KelseyWoods]

Hi ntusss and Emily!

ntusss: For answer choice (B), you are correct that the passage states that the researchers have identified several causal factors of groupthink and the author states that it's important to identify additional factors. But saying that the author and researchers agree that the causal factors are "unique to each case" is too specific and unsupported. That suggests that the author and researchers think that different cases of groupthink involve different unique causes--but that's actually the opposite of what they seem to be saying. The researchers describe the factors that lead to groupthink as "a recurring pattern" and the author states that its important to identify additional factors so that groupthink can be avoided. But if the causes were unique to each case, knowing the causal factors wouldn't help you avoid groupthink because they would be totally different than what had caused groupthink in the past.

For answer choice (D), the passage states that groupthink can manifest as "closed-mindedness to warnings of problems and to alternative viewpoints." That suggests that in some instances of groupthink, it is difficult for the group to fully consider alternative viewpoints or warnings of problems. But it's too strong to say that any outside information would certainly be unable to influence group decisions once they have become determined by groupthink. Outside information could include things besides alternative viewpoints and warnings and none of the information we've been given is enough to prove that it would certainly be unable to influence group decisions during groupthink. Remember that the vast majority of questions in RC are some form of Must Be True and you should treat the answer choices with the same scrutiny as you would in LR MBT questions.

Emily: Yes, answer choice (A) is way too strong. We don't know that groupthink occurs in ALL strongly cohesive groups.

For answer choice (E), "on balance" basically means the same thing as "all things considered." It just refers to taking into account all of the available information, including pros and cons. So, all things considered, groupthink cannot be expected to have a beneficial effect in a group's decision making because both the researchers and the author point out the dangers of groupthink and the importance of identifying its causal factors so that it can be avoided.

Hope this helps!

Best,
Kelsey