SAT OwlQuestion bank / Cross-Text Connections
Text 1: Many dog owners believe that a wagging tail is a sure sign that a dog is happy. To them, a dog that wags its tail at a stranger is simply being friendly.
Text 2: Animal behavior researchers have found that tail wagging is more complicated. In one study, dogs wagged their tails more to the right when they saw their owners and more to the left when they saw an unfamiliar, dominant dog. Wagging, the researchers concluded, shows that a dog is emotionally aroused, but not necessarily that it is pleased.
Based on the texts, how would the researchers in Text 2 most likely respond to the belief described in Text 1?
By claiming that dogs wag their tails only when they feel threatened
By suggesting that the belief oversimplifies what a wagging tail can mean
By agreeing that a wagging tail reliably shows that a dog is happy
By arguing that dogs wag their tails more at strangers than at their owners
Show answer and explanation
Answer: B
Text 1 treats wagging as a sure sign of happiness. Text 2 says wagging shows arousal "but not necessarily" pleasure and that dogs wag in different ways in different situations. The researchers would say the owners' belief is too simple, choice B.
Choice A overcorrects: the dogs in Text 2 also wagged when they saw their owners, so wagging does not happen only when dogs feel threatened.
Why the other choices are wrong
- A. This choice overcorrects by stating wagging only happens when dogs feel threatened. Text 2 notes dogs also wagged when seeing their owners, so the behavior is not exclusive to threat.
- C. This choice contradicts Text 2, which states wagging shows arousal but not necessarily pleasure. The researchers explicitly reject the idea that wagging is a sure sign of happiness.
- D. This choice misrepresents the study's findings. Text 2 describes the direction of the wag (left or right) in different situations, not that dogs wag more frequently at strangers than owners.
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