Although parapsychology is often considered a pseudoscience, it is in fact a genuine scientific enterprise, for it uses scientific methods such as controlled experiments and statistical tests of clearly stated hypotheses to examine the questions it raises.
The conclusion above is properly drawn if which of the following is assumed?
(A) If a field of study can conclusively answer the questions it raises, then it is a genuine science.
(B) Since parapsychology uses scientific methods, it will produce credible results.
(C) Any enterprise that does not use controlled experiments and statistical tests is not genuine science.
(D) Any field of study that employs scientific methods is a genuine scientific enterprise.
(E) Since parapsychology raises clearly statable questions, they can be tested in controlled experiments.
Solution
Passage Analysis
| Although parapsychology is often considered a pseudoscience, it is in fact a genuine scientific enterprise, for it uses scientific methods such as controlled experiments and statistical tests of clearly stated hypotheses to examine the questions it raises. | Key-points from this statement:
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Pre-thinking
The question stem asks us to find the assumption on which the argument depends. Now an assumption should have three basic characteristics:
(a) It should present new information.
(b) It should be a must be true statement (if we negate the assumption, the conclusion falls apart).
(c) It should support the argument.
Keeping these three guidelines in mind, let’s look at our understanding of the reasons given and conclusion drawn in the passage.
Conclusion given: …parapsychology (is) a true scientific enterprise
Reason for the conclusion: …parapsychology uses scientific methods
So essentially the author must assume a link between using scientific methods and qualifying a field as scientific or not. Therefore, we can safely state that the author assumes that:
- If a field uses scientific methods, then it qualifies as a genuine scientific enterprise.
With this pre-thinking let’s approach the answer choices.
Analysis of Option Statements
| (A) If a field of study can conclusively answer the questions it raises, then it is a genuine science. | This option is incorrect. As per this choice, a necessary condition for a field to be considered true science is that it should conclusively answer the questions it raises. However, in the given argument the author distinctly states that since parapsychology uses scientific method such as using statistical test to examine the questions raised, it is a true science.Therefore, it is amply clear that according to the author, just approaching the questions raised with scientific methods is a good enough basis for a field to be considered a true science.Also, please not that this option lays stress only on answering the questions conclusively; no emphasis is laid on using scientific methods in the process. This aspect makes answer choice A out of scope as well.
Clearly this option is incorrect. |
| (B) Since parapsychology uses scientific methods, it will produce credible results. | This option is not correct as it is completely out of scope. The author has not implied any relationship between producing credible results and qualifying a field as a science on the basis of these results. The underlying emphasis is just on the using of scientific methods. Hence answer choice B is incorrect. |
| (C) Any enterprise that does not use controlled experiments and statistical tests is not genuine science. | This option is incorrect. Firstly , the author’s purpose behind giving examples of scientific methods such as controlled experiments and statistical tests was not to define what constitutes scientific methods and what does not. So, it is possible that some other processes could as well be regarded as scientific methods. In such a case, a field could employ those processes and be qualified as a genuine science.Secondly the author says that using such scientific methods is a sufficient condition to regard parapsychology as a true science. The author does not say it is a necessary condition that should be present in all true scientific enterprises. Therefore, the author’s conclusion is not dependent on the statement given in answer choice C. |
| (D) Any field of study that employs scientific methods is a genuine scientific enterprise. | This option is correct. It is exactly on the same lines as our pre-thought answer. For the author to validate his conclusion, he must assume that there is a link between using scientific method and qualifying a field as genuine science enterprise. Since this a must be true condition, when we negate this assumption, the conclusion of the argument must fall. The negated statement will be:It is not true that any of field of science that employs scientific methods is a genuine scientific enterprise.The above statement shatters our faith in the author’s argument. Now the author can’t call parapsychology a science on the basis of its using scientific methods as the qualifying criterion is not valid anymore.
Hence option choice D is a must be true statement that the author of the argument has to assume for drawing the stated conclusion. |
| (E) Since parapsychology raises clearly statable questions, they can be tested in controlled experiments | This option is incorrect. It is an iSWAT: it picks up words from the given passage but changes the context completely to make the answer choice incorrect.The author of the argument mentions clearly statable questions and controlled experiments to give examples of scientific methods used by parapsychology. The author’s argument is based on the use of such scientific methods and not their inter-relationship. Hence, answer choice e is not correct. |
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