Logic Breakdown

Passage Summary: The researcher notes that while stress-related illnesses require stress reduction to get better, some high blood pressure can be fixed with pills. Therefore, those cases of high blood pressure can't be from stress.

Conclusion: At least some instances of high blood pressure are not the result of stress.

Reasoning: If an illness is caused by stress, it can only be cured by lowering stress; however, some high blood pressure can be cured with medicine.

Analysis: The argument relies on a missing link between the 'medicine' and 'stress reduction.' It assumes that taking medicine is fundamentally different from reducing stress. If the medicine actually worked by lowering the body's stress response, the researcher's logic would collapse. Look for an answer that confirms the medicine is not just a way of reducing stress.

Passage Stimulus

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20.

Which one of the following is an assumption required by the researcher's argument?

Correct Answer
E
Correct by the negation test. If the medicine does reduce stress, then the effective treatment could still be stress reduction, so those cases might be stress-caused. Thus, the argument needs the assumption that the medicine does not itself reduce stress.
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