Question 34·Easy·Inferences
Researchers examined whether the way information is presented affects people’s ability to remember it. One group of participants studied a grocery list arranged by category (all fruits together, all dairy together, and so on), while another group studied the same items in random order. After a 30-minute break, everyone tried to recall the items. Those who had studied the categorized list remembered significantly more items than those who had studied the random list. The researchers concluded that people’s recall of information may be influenced by ______
Which choice most logically completes the text?
For questions about research conclusions, first identify what the researchers actually changed between groups (the independent variable) and what outcome they measured. Then choose the answer that restates that changed factor as what “may influence” the outcome, and eliminate any option that (1) wasn’t mentioned, (2) didn’t differ between groups, or (3) adds new, unsupported information. This lets you answer quickly by matching the experiment’s design to the conclusion.
Hints
Focus on the experimental design
Look back at how the two groups’ study conditions were different. What is the one thing the researchers changed between the groups?
Use the cause-and-effect logic
The group with one type of list remembered more items than the other group. That suggests the factor that differs between the groups is what affected recall. What factor is that?
Check what was and wasn’t mentioned
Before choosing, ask: Does the passage mention anything about word familiarity, paper size, or time of day? Or does it focus on something else as the only difference between groups?
Step-by-step Explanation
Identify what the question is asking
The question asks what the researchers reasonably concluded from their experiment: "people’s recall of information may be influenced by ______". You need to pick the choice that matches the one key factor that was different between the two groups in the study.
Find the key difference between the two groups
One group studied a grocery list arranged by category (all fruits together, all dairy together, etc.). The other group studied the same items but in random order.
That means:
- The items themselves were the same.
- What changed was how the items were arranged/presented when participants first studied them.
Connect the difference to the results
After a 30-minute break, the group who studied the categorized list remembered more items than the group with the random list. Since the only described difference was how the list was arranged, the researchers logically conclude that this difference in arrangement affects people’s ability to recall the items later.
Match this idea to the best answer choice
You now look for the answer that describes the key factor: the way the information was arranged when participants first studied it. That corresponds to choice B) the organization of the information when first learned.