📊 GMAT Exam Prep

An author states: 'Since crime rates decreased after our city installed more streetlights, the new streetlights are directly responsible for the reduction.' An effective critique of this argument would primarily focus on:

A Questioning the cost-effectiveness of installing more streetlights.
B Identifying other potential factors that could have also contributed to the decrease in crime.
C Debating the precise definition of 'crime rate' used in the argument.
D Proposing alternative solutions for crime reduction that are more innovative.

✓ Correct Answer: Option B

This argument makes a causal claim based on correlation (post hoc, ergo propter hoc). An effective critique would suggest alternative causes for the crime reduction, weakening the asserted causal link.

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