Therapist: Cognitive psychotherapy focuses on changing a patient’s conscious beliefs. Thus, cognitive psychotherapy is likely to be more effective at helping patients overcome psychological problems than are forms of psychotherapy that focus on changing unconscious beliefs and desires, since only conscious beliefs are under the patient’s direct conscious control.
Summarize Argument
Cognitive therapy, which changes a patient’s conscious beliefs, is more effective than therapies that change unconscious beliefs. This is because patients only have control over their conscious beliefs.
Notable Assumptions
The therapist assumes that a patient’s ability to control their beliefs influences the effectiveness of therapeutic treatment.
A
Psychological problems are frequently caused by unconscious beliefs that could be changed with the aid of psychotherapy.
This weakens the argument. It suggests that forms of therapy which focus on changing unconscious beliefs could be effective.
B
It is difficult for any form of psychotherapy to be effective without focusing on mental states that are under the patient’s direct conscious control.
This strengthens the argument. It provides support for the therapist’s assumption that a patient’s ability to control their beliefs influences the effectiveness of therapeutic treatment.
C
Cognitive psychotherapy is the only form of psychotherapy that focuses primarily on changing the patient’s conscious beliefs.
This does not affect the argument. The therapist does not argue that cognitive therapy is better than all other forms of therapy, but that cognitive therapy is better than therapies that focus on changing unconscious beliefs.
D
No form of psychotherapy that focuses on changing the patient’s unconscious beliefs and desires can be effective unless it also helps change beliefs that are under the patient’s direct conscious control.
This does not affect the argument. (D) says that to be effective, therapies that focus on changing unconscious beliefs must change conscious beliefs too, but the therapist doesn’t argue about whether other therapies are effective—only that cognitive therapy is more effective.
E
All of a patient’s conscious beliefs are under the patient’s conscious control, but other psychological states cannot be controlled effectively without the aid of psychotherapy.
This does not affect the argument. (E) discusses psychotherapy broadly, but doesn’t distinguish between cognitive psychotherapy and other forms, which is essential to the argument.
A
Novel X and Novel Y are both semiautobiographical novels, and the two novels contain many very similar themes and situations.
B
The fact that Novel X and Novel Y are both semiautobiographical novels and contain many very similar themes and situations might lead one to suspect plagiarism on the part of one of the authors.
C
The author of Novel X and the author of Novel Y are from very similar backgrounds and have led very similar lives.
D
It is less likely that one of the authors of Novel X or Novel Y is guilty of plagiarism than that the similarity of themes and situations in the two novels is merely coincidental.
E
If the authors of Novel X and Novel Y are from very similar backgrounds and have led similar lives, suspicions that either of the authors plagiarized are very likely to be unwarranted.