LR Question 6 Explanation
QUESTION TEXT: Sport utility vehicles (SUVs) are, because of their…
QUESTION TYPE: Paradox
PARADOX: SUVs are safer for those riding in them, but auto safety experts say that the increase in SUV ownership is cause for worry.
ANALYSIS: In any car crash, there are two cars involved. And the argument only said that SUVs are safer for those in the SUV.
So the traffic fatality statistics could show that SUVs are safer for those in them but more dangerous for those in the other car.
___________
- This increases the paradox. Assuming that people know SUVs are safer, this would cause people to be better at driving them. We’re looking for a reason that SUVs are dangerous.
- Fuel tank capacity isn’t relevant to safety. You might be thinking that a large fuel tank could cause larger explosions….but that’s a huge stretch.
Answers suck – don’t work so hard to prove them right. - This seems very tempting. If vehicles carry more people, then there are more people that could die in accidents.
Careful. This answer did not say that SUVs lead to more people on the road. It’s possible that there are more people in SUVs, but fewer vehicles on the road. I.e. people could all drive in one SUV instead of two smaller cars.
So there’d be the same number of people driving, and no greater risk.
It’s also possible that people are switching from other large vehicles (such as vans) to SUVs. So there’d be no change in average passenger distribution.
In any case, it is not a reasonable assumption that a high average number of people in SUVs leads to more people on the road. - CORRECT. This shows that SUVs may be safer for those in them, but also more likely to cause damage to people in other cars.
- This has no impact. If SUVs are as likely to be involved in accidents, then that eliminates a possible difference. We want to show a difference!
More Resources for Paradox Questions
- Intro Course lesson: This intro course lesson covers Paradox questions.
- Mastery Seminar lesson: This LR Mastery seminar lesson covers paradox questions.
Safety Experts conclude and are shocked (alarmed) because not everyone has switched over to SUV’s, given the safety benefits. (D) explains how more people die in collisions in SUV vs Sedans.
Hey Graeme,
Thanks for posting these explanations – they’re incredibly helpful in comparing my train of thought to those of the test makers! One quick tweak I’d suggest in your analysis section: not all car crashes involve two cars.
Alex
Hi Alex, it’s great to see that you’ve benefited so much from Graeme’s explanations.
And thanks for pointing that out, the page will be updated shortly.
How does that resolve the paradox? Is this just a sketchy question? The SUV passengers are safer than small vehicle passengers – for the fatality experts to be ‘alarmed’ with the statistics, wouldn’t the SUV statistics have to run counter to it? If not, because it’s safer to ride SUV, more people dying in smaller car-SUV accidents seems to be in line with the information given.
Could you answer this question? Your website is amazing! Thanks!
We’re given two seemingly contradictory facts:
1. Because of their greater weight, SUV’s are safer for their occupants than are smaller vehicles
2. An analysis of recent traffic fatality stats has led safety experts to conclude that the increasing popularity of SUV’s is alarming
i.e. If SUV’s are safer, why would safety experts be alarmed–shouldn’t they be happy about this trend?
(B) answers this question. SUV’s might be safer for their occupants, but collisions with the highest fatalities involve SUV’s, so it’s more dangerous for the occupants of smaller vehicles to collide with SUV’s than with other cars.