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Difficulty: MediumSampling and Survey Flaws

A manufacturer of various athletic equipment recently released a premium line of smart treadmills. To assess overall customer satisfaction with the manufacturer's entire range of products, the company emailed a survey exclusively to customers who had registered the new smart treadmills for warranty purposes. Over 95 percent of the respondents reported being extremely satisfied with their purchase. Based on this, the company's executive team concluded that nearly all of their customers are highly satisfied with the brand.

The reasoning in the executive team's argument is most vulnerable to criticism on the grounds that it

  1. draws a broad conclusion about the manufacturer's entire customer base from a sample that is unlikely to be representative of that groupAnswer
  2. B
    confuses the percentage of respondents who are highly satisfied with the absolute number of satisfied customers
  3. C
    presumes, without providing sufficient justification, that purchasing a premium smart treadmill is the cause of the high satisfaction reported
  4. D
    infers that a characteristic belongs to every member of a group merely because it belongs to most members of a distinct subgroup
  5. E
    relies on an ambiguous use of the term 'satisfaction' when interpreting the results of the email survey

Answer

The argument draws a broad conclusion about the manufacturer's entire customer base from a sample that is unlikely to be representative of that group.
The correct answer accurately points out that the survey respondents (buyers of a specific premium treadmill who registered for a warranty) do not accurately represent the target population of the conclusion (all customers of the manufacturer's various athletic equipment). People buying premium products might have a different experience than those buying standard products, and those who bother to register for warranties might be more invested in the brand than the average consumer.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the conclusion of the argument.
The conclusion is that 'nearly all of their customers are highly satisfied with the brand.'
This is the final claim that the author is trying to prove using the survey data.
2
Identify the premises (evidence) provided to support the conclusion.
The evidence is that over 95% of customers who bought the new premium smart treadmills and registered them for warranty reported being extremely satisfied.
Understanding the evidence is necessary to see if it adequately supports the conclusion.
3
Evaluate the relationship between the premises and the conclusion to find the logical gap.
The conclusion is about ALL customers who buy ANY athletic equipment from the manufacturer. The evidence is only about a specific subgroup: those who bought premium treadmills AND registered for a warranty.
Finding the mismatch in scope between the evidence and the conclusion reveals the flaw.
4
Determine the type of flaw occurring.
Because the subgroup surveyed is not representative of the broader population in the conclusion, this is a Sampling and Survey Flaw.
Matching the logical gap to a known LSAT flaw category makes it easier to find the correct answer choice.

Key Concept

Sampling Flaw - Unrepresentative Sample
Estimated Time:1m 30s
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Topics

Sampling and Survey Flaws

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