This question asks you to focus on the "research on confession testimony" and determine why the author included it in the passage. When you get a question like this, try to identify the reason before turning to the answer choices.
Here, the author seems to bring in the research to provide another point of evidence in favor of her argument that cooperating witness testimony may not be the most trustworthy. This piece of evidence shows us that jury's may not be good at evaluating the testimony.
Answer Choices: (A) is incorrect because this research is not a potential problem in the analysis, but rather a point of evidence she is citing.
(B) is incorrect because the research is not being compared unfavorably to another study. In fact, there is no study mentioned previously in the passage for it to be compared to.
(C) is correct because it identifies the use that we found above. The author is using the study as another piece of evidence in favor of her argument, aka it is being used to help justify her argument. Here, the paragraph is focused on how jurors can evaluate the testimony, so the study is being used to help that conclusion.
(D) is incorrect because the paragraph is not questioning the relevance of jury decision making, but rather the reliability of their decision making.
(E) is incorrect but tricky. The paragraph does mention juror's evaluating both defendants and cooperating witnesses. However, the research in question is brought in about both of them and how juror's are bad at evaluating the evidence from both defendants and cooperating witnesses. So, nothing is being contrasted.
