MCAT Critical Analysis and Reasoning Skills Question 61: Answer and Explanation

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Question: 61

2. The author's argument about the impact of the Depression on male breadwinners would be best supported by research that demonstrated:

  • A. married men were more likely to lose jobs than unmarried men.
  • B. government welfare programs helped ease financial hardship for the unemployed.
  • C. unemployment was a reliable predictor of psychological depression.
  • D. unfair wages meant many wives were unable to replace the breadwinner's income by entering the workforce.

Correct Answer: C

Explanation:

C This is a Strengthen question.

Note: The author's argument about the impact of the Depression on male breadwinners suggests breadwinners who lost their jobs were personally hurt, and that this had a negative impact on families (paragraphs 3 and 6).

A: No. This evidence would not strengthen the argument. The author's argument is about the effect of unemployment on married men on an individual and family level. Knowing that married men overall were more likely to lose their jobs would not strengthen the author's point about the impact of unemployment on individual men and their families.

B: No. This answer choice does not strengthen the author's argument about the effects of unemployment on men. The author states in the passage that relief efforts had little impact on unemployed men's feelings (paragraph 3).

C: Yes. Evidence that unemployment caused depression would strengthen the author's claim in the passage that loss of employment coincided with loss of identity and marriage strain.

D: No. This choice refers to the discrimination women faced, not directly to men's experience of unemployment. According to the author, men were most affected by their perceived loss of status and identity, not just by a reduction in household income.

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