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Difficulty: MediumEvaluating Causal Arguments and Alternative Explanations

A major telecommunications company recently replaced traditional underground fiber-optic cables with low-Earth-orbit satellite connections for all its remote enterprise clients. Over the following year, customer satisfaction scores regarding connection stability among these remote clients rose by 40 percent. The company's executives concluded that satellite technology is inherently more reliable than underground physical infrastructure for serving remote geographic locations. Which of the following would it be most useful to establish in order to evaluate the executives' conclusion?

  1. Whether the company simultaneously replaced the client-side network routers for all remote enterprise accounts at the time of the transitionAnswer
  2. B
    Whether satellite transmission technology is generally less expensive to install and maintain per client than traditional underground fiber-optic cabling
  3. C
    Whether the higher customer satisfaction scores led the telecommunications company to expand its satellite service offerings to urban markets
  4. D
    Whether remote enterprise clients plan to expand their business operations into additional geographic regions in the next fiscal year
  5. E
    Whether satellite coverage extended to new remote areas where residents previously had no access to any telecommunications infrastructure

Answer

The argument is best evaluated by establishing whether the company simultaneously replaced the client-side network routers for all remote enterprise accounts at the time of the transition.
The correct answer introduces a potential confounding factor: simultaneous client-side router replacement. If new routers were introduced at the same time as the satellite system, the observed stability increase could be attributed to the upgraded hardware rather than the satellite technology itself. Conversely, if no hardware was replaced, the argument's causal claim is significantly strengthened.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the premises and conclusion of the causal argument.
Premise: Fiber-optic cables were replaced with satellite connections, and stability satisfaction rose by 40%. Conclusion: Satellite technology caused the increase in connection reliability.
Understanding the precise cause-and-effect claim is necessary before evaluating alternative explanations.
2
Formulate key evaluation criteria for causal reasoning.
To test whether satellite tech caused the improvement, check if another simultaneous change (a confounding variable) could explain the positive outcome instead.
Causal claims based on observed before-and-after correlations are vulnerable to third-variable confounders.
3
Assess the answer choices for a factor that confirms or rules out an alternative cause.
Knowing whether client-side routers were replaced at the same time reveals whether the stability gain was caused by satellite tech or by superior router hardware.
If hardware was updated concurrently, the satellite connection itself may not be the cause of the performance improvement.

Key Concept

Evaluating Causal Arguments and Alternative Explanations
Estimated Time:1m 30s
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Topics

Evaluating Causal Arguments and Alternative Explanations

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