Interpretation Flashcards

A researcher reports: 'Among patients given the new drug, 70% showed improvement. Among patients given a placebo, 65% showed improvement.' What is the most accurate interpretation of these results?

Answer: The drug shows only a modest benefit over placebo.

The 5-percentage-point difference between drug (70%) and placebo (65%) represents a modest, not dramatic, benefit.

A graph shows crime rates rising steadily from 2010 to 2015, then dropping sharply in 2016. A news headline reads: 'New Police Chief's Policies Slash Crime.' What interpretive error does this headline most likely commit?

Answer: Assuming correlation implies causation.

Attributing the 2016 drop solely to the police chief's policies assumes causation from a temporal correlation without ruling out other factors.

The statement 'All registered voters in this county are citizens' is best interpreted as:

Answer: A universal affirmative claim about a specific group.

The word 'All' makes this a universal affirmative proposition applying to every member of the defined group.

A survey finds that students who eat breakfast score higher on standardized tests. A school board member concludes: 'We must provide free breakfast to raise test scores.' Which interpretive assumption is embedded in this conclusion?

Answer: Breakfast consumption causes higher scores, not merely correlates with them.

The conclusion treats a correlational finding as evidence of causation, which is the key embedded assumption requiring scrutiny.

When interpreting a passage, identifying the 'scope' of a claim means determining:

Answer: How wide or narrow the claim's coverage is.

Scope refers to the breadth of application of a claim—whether it covers all cases, some cases, or only specific instances.

A politician says, 'My opponent has never publicly supported veterans' benefits.' The strongest charitable interpretation of this statement is:

Answer: There is no public record of the opponent endorsing veterans' benefits.

The literal, least inflammatory reading is simply that no public endorsement exists, not that the opponent actively opposes such benefits.

A report states: 'Unemployment fell from 8% to 4% over five years.' A critic argues: 'This figure is misleading because it excludes discouraged workers.' This criticism is an example of:

Answer: Questioning the validity of the measurement used.

The critic challenges whether the official unemployment metric accurately measures the underlying reality it purports to represent.