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Difficulty: MediumMethod of Reasoning

Neurobiologist: Cognitive psychologists have long maintained that rapid eye movement (REM) sleep is necessary for consolidating emotional memories, citing studies where subjects deprived of REM sleep performed poorly on subsequent emotional recall tests. However, this conclusion is premature. Subjects administered pharmacological agents that selectively suppress REM sleep without altering other sleep stages exhibit completely intact emotional memory consolidation. Therefore, the memory deficits observed in earlier studies were almost certainly caused by the general stress induced by the deprivation methods, rather than by the absence of REM sleep.

Which of the following most accurately describes the method of reasoning used by the neurobiologist?

  1. A
    rejecting an empirical finding by demonstrating that the initial premise used to support it is logically self-contradictory
  2. B
    arguing that because a physical condition is not sufficient to prevent memory deficits, it cannot be necessary for memory consolidation
  3. undermining a causal claim by presenting evidence that isolates the purported cause from an experimental confoundAnswer
  4. D
    treating an intermediate observation regarding the stressfulness of sleep deprivation as the argument's final conclusion
  5. E
    refuting a scientific hypothesis by showing that its universal application yields logically absurd consequences

Answer

The argument proceeds by undermining a causal claim through presenting evidence that isolates the purported cause from an experimental confound.
The neurobiologist targets the psychologists' conclusion that REM sleep is causally required for memory consolidation. By pointing out that pharmacological suppression eliminates REM sleep without causing memory impairment, the neurobiologist effectively separates the absence of REM sleep from the confounding stress caused by standard deprivation techniques, proposing that the confound was the true cause of the original findings.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the opposing position and its supporting evidence in the stimulus.
Psychologists claim that REM sleep is necessary for emotional memory consolidation because mechanical deprivation of REM sleep led to poor recall.
Understanding the precise claim and its evidential basis is essential before evaluating the author's counterargument.
2
Analyze the counter-evidence introduced by the author.
Pharmacological suppression removes REM sleep without disturbing the subject through physical awakening, and memory consolidation remains intact.
This isolates the variable of REM sleep absence from the physical stress of manual deprivation methods.
3
Abstract the overall argumentative technique.
The author demonstrates that when the confounding variable (stress of deprivation) is removed, the effect disappears, thereby undermining the original causal inference.
Matching this abstract description to the available answer choices reveals the correct method of reasoning.

Key Concept

Method of Reasoning: Isolating Causal Factors and Identifying Experimental Confounds
Estimated Time:1m 15s
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Topics

Method of Reasoning

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