SAT Reading & Writing · Inferences
Because early adopters may have differed from nonusers in other relevant ways, the observed difference in consumption stability between…
The rapid expansion of a mobile money service in Kenya allowed households to send and receive financial transfers quickly during local economic shocks, such as a bad harvest or unexpected medical expense. Researchers found that users of the service were better able to maintain steady consumption levels during these shocks than nonusers, though early adopters of the technology may have differed from nonusers in other ways, such as having stronger existing social networks. Which choice most logically completes the text?
Because early adopters may have differed from nonusers in other relevant ways, the observed difference in consumption stability between users and nonusers ______
Because early adopters may have differed from nonusers in other relevant ways, the observed difference in consumption stability between users and nonusers ______
Answer and explanation
Answer: B: may partly reflect pre-existing differences between the two groups instead of representing a pure measure of the technology's effect.
The passage explicitly flags a plausible alternative explanation, pre-existing differences like stronger social networks among early adopters, which means the observed gap could reflect that alternative factor instead of, or in addition to, the technology's own effect. That's B. A treats the correlation as fully proven causation, ignoring the passage's own caution. C contradicts the passage, which raises social networks as a potentially relevant factor, not an irrelevant one. D invents a specific alternative cause, harvest quality, the passage never mentions.
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