Logical Reasoning · Principle

PrepTest 145 · Section 2 · Question 8

Phase 1 (your first ~400 questions): read the guidance, then answer. No clock.

Step 1 · Pre-Question Guidance · read this first

Question type

Principle (justify)

The one idea it tests

To get from 'people feel less bound when using X' to 'teach people about using X rightly', you need a rule that such teaching raises their sense of responsibility.

The basic logic

Premises: a setting leads people to do more harm, because they feel less morally held back there. Conclusion: give them ethics education about it. The bridge principle: education about using a tool ethically boosts felt responsibility for using it.

Tiny words that decide it

“for this reason”
“should”
“less”

Playground logic

Ms. Rivera notices kids cheat more on the honor-system tally board than in refereed games, because no one is watching and they feel less bound. Her conclusion: teach a fair-play lesson about the board. The principle that makes it click: a lesson about fair use of something makes kids feel more responsible when using it.

Step 2 · The kid story

The Honor Board Mystery

At recess, kids record their own four-square wins on a whiteboard called the Honor Board. No referee, no one checking. Strangely, the Honor Board shows Marcus with 412 wins this week. Recess is only 20 minutes. Ms. Rivera noticed that kids fudge their scores far more on the Honor Board than in games with a referee. "When nobody is face to face with you," she said, "it seems you feel less bound to be fair." So she planned a lesson: How to Use the Honor Board Fairly. Frankie argued the lesson would be pointless. Sharon argued it would work. Priya settled it. "It only makes sense if learning about fair use of the board actually makes kids feel more responsible when they use it." Marcus erased 400 wins.

Step 3 · Try the model question

Kids fudge their scores much more on the self-reported Honor Board than in refereed games. This seems to happen because, with no one face to face, kids feel less bound to be fair. So Ms. Rivera should teach a lesson on fair use of the Honor Board.

Which rule, if accepted, best backs up Ms. Rivera's plan?

Step 4 · The courtroom tale

The Case of the Self-Checkout Lessons

The grocery chain was sued for spending money on customer workshops. Mr. Whitfield defended it. "Your Honor, theft rose sharply at self-checkout lanes. With no cashier face to face, shoppers seem to feel less held back. So the store taught short classes on honest self-checkout." The plaintiff's lawyer scoffed. "Classes? Why would talk change anything?" Whitfield nodded. "The plan rests on one principle: when people learn how to use a system honestly, they feel more responsible using it. Our expert's studies support exactly that." The judge agreed. "Grant that principle, and the workshops follow from the problem. Case dismissed."

Step 5 · Work the real question

Open PrepTest 145, Section 2, Question 8 in your official copy from LSAC (for example in LawHub) and read it there.

Your answer

How to apply it

Find the conclusion: a recommendation to educate people. Find the premises: a setting makes people feel less held back, so they do more harm. Look for the principle that connects the remedy to the cause, one saying that education about proper use raises people's sense of responsibility. Reject principles that only call for new rules, that say the opposite effect, or that judge blame without touching the remedy.