Interviewer: You have shown that biofeedback, dietary changes, and adoption of proper sleep habits all succeed in cur...
ielkindJune 1, 2020
Why A?
I chose A because of process of elimination. Initially, I thought the flaw was circular reasoning – the therapist is using a premise (one that he claimed) cited by interviewer as his conclusion. How does A illustrate that flaw?
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You are correct! The flaw is that the therapist's reply is a circular argument.
Answer choice (A) is correct because the therapist's circular argument precludes the possibility of evidence that would disconfirm the treatment.
The therapist claims that any case of insomnia is curable as long as patients rigorously adhere to the treatment. They then respond to the interviewer by claiming that if a patient does not respond to the treatment, then they must not have been rigorous in adhering to it.
In this way, this circular argument makes it impossible for the efficacy of the treatment to be disconfirmed. If a patient is cured, the treatment worked. If a patient is not cured, they must not have followed the treatment. There is no room for evidence that does not support the efficacy of the treatment.
Hope this is helpful! Please let us know if you have any further questions.
