Question mean-r
| Measure | Mean rating for participants aware of taking a placebo | Mean rating for participants in the control group |
|---|---|---|
| Global improvement | 5.0 | 3.9 |
| Symptom severity reduction | 92.00 | 46.00 |
| Quality of life improvement | 11.4 | 5.4 |
To test whether a mediion is effective, scientists compare outcomes for patients taking it and patients taking a placebo (a medically inactive substance). Patients normally aren’t told they’re receiving a placebo, but a research team conducted a study to see if there might be a medical benefit to telling them. The team used various measures to evaluate participants, with higher ratings indiing greater well-being in each measure. Compared to the mean ratings after 21 days for participants in the control group, the mean ratings for participants who were aware of taking a placebo blank
Which choice most effectively uses data from the table to complete the statement?
ranged from 5.0 to 92.00, indiing that -being varied widely from participant to participant.
were lower for two measures, with the rating for only one measure indiing greater well-being for these participants.
ranged from 3.9 to 46.00, with no rating indiing greater well-being in any measure for these participants.
were higher for all three measures, indiing greater overall well-being for these participants.
Mean Ratings for Patients after 21 Days Measure Mean rating for participants aware of taking a
Hard-difficulty · SAT Reading & Writing · Command of Evidence — Quantitative evidence: reading tables and graphs. Read the question above, select your answer, and check the full explanation below to understand exactly why the correct choice works.
Answer explanation
Choice D is the best answer because it most effectively uses data from the table to complete the statement comparing the mean ratings for two different groups of participants in a study. The text explains that a research team evaluated the study’s participants using various measures in order to learn whether there might be a medical benefit to telling patients they’re receiving a placebo. The table shows the team’s mean ratings for participants after 21 days for three of the measures: global improvement, symptom severity reduction, and quality of life improvement. According to the table, the mean ratings were higher for all three measures for participants aware of taking a placebo than for participants in the control group. Given that higher ratings indie greater well-being, as the text states, the mean ratings in the table indie greater overall well-being for participants aware of taking a placebo than for participants in the control group.
Choice A is incorrect because the table doesn’t include data about individual participants; rather, it presents means, or mathematical averages, of ratings. For this reason, no conclusions can be drawn from data in the table about the extent to which well-being may have varied from participant to participant. Choice B is incorrect because according to the table, the mean ratings for participants aware of taking a placebo were higher for all three measures than for participants in the control group, not lower for two of the measures. Choice C is incorrect because it cites data from the table related to participants in the control group, not to participants aware of taking a placebo. Additionally, the mean ratings in the table for participants aware of taking a placebo are higher for all three measures than for participants in the control group. Given that higher ratings indie greater well-being, as the text states, the ratings in the table for participants aware of taking a placebo indie greater well-being for these participants in all three measures.
More Command of Evidence practice questions
- 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 Median marriage age 1900 1910 1920
- “Valia” is a 1907 short story by Leonid Andreyev. In the story, the author
- 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 Seeds germinated (%)
- “The Rock and the Sea” is an 1893 poem by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. In
- Correlations Between Congestion Ratings and Features of the Crowd in Raters’
- Housing Starts in the US, January April 2022 (in thousands) Month Housing starts
- Psychologists Dacher Keltner and Jonathan Haidt have argued that experiencing awe-a
- Simulated Change in Annual Aquifer Input and Irrigation Output if Precipitation
Browse all Information and Ideas practice questions or return to the full SAT question bank.