Same Q-Stem Most Strongly Supported vs. Strengthen?

[nickp18]

I'm going through the LRB chapter 4 (Most Strongly Supported) and came across one question stem in chapter 9 (Strengthen) that is the exact same: "The statements above, if true, most strongly support which of the following?"

This q-stem is the exact same, yet the questions are from different families, so what is the best way of determining how to answer the question and ensure we have the correct family?

[Adam Tyson]

The stem you quoted is definitely a Most Strongly Supported question, nickp18, and not a Strengthen question. If you can tell us which version of the LR Bible you have and what page in Chapter 9 that is on, we'll take a look and see about issuing a correction if it's called for. Thanks!

A very similar Strengthen stem would ask "which of the following, if true, most strongly supports the (claim/argument/conclusion/etc.)". The difference is the flow of information: if the stimulus is being used to support the answer, the flow is "down" from the stimulus, and that's in the Prove Family, which includes Must Be True/Most Strongly Supported among others. If the answer is being used to support the stimulus, the flow is "up" from the answers, which means you are in the Help Family, which includes Strengthen questions.