Read answer choices in DIFFERENT ORDER?!!! Forum

[lawschoolisfun2012]

Preparing for the June 2010 LSAT,

Anyone try reading the answer choices in different order? I mean, when answering the question, I usually guess what I think the answer should be then I move on to the choices. A first, and E last. But, what if I just started with C? or E? Could there be an advantage? I know a good test-taker is looking for the right answer, but everytime you read a possible answer choice it can change your opinion or thought. Maybe the LSAT test makers take advantage or this? Maybe I am way off and it doesn't matter.

I know this can help during games, but what about LR and RC?

Thoughts please!

[bighead715]

uh sounds like just a psychological thing

thered be no practical advantage to that

[Leeroy Jenkins]

Don't forget to close one eye and use a cover sheet to block the other answers so you don't accidentally take them all in at the same time and ruin your frame of mind.

[LJackson]

I get a similar feeling on certain questions in logic games, especially ones where you are more likely to have to make hypotheticals. I feel like there are certain types of questions where the correct answers are very rarely A or B and was thinking I should start from the bottom instead of at A. Could just be a mind trick though.

[GeePee]

Given that you should probably be reading all of the answer choices anyway, wasting your valuable time trying to decide which answer choice you should read next is a firm "no."

[skip james]

Given that you should probably be reading all of the answer choices anyway, wasting your valuable time trying to decide which answer choice you should read next is a firm "no."

meh, I read parallels and long stimuli/answers in reverse order. I started that after I read that psychometricians tend to put correct answers towards the end of longer questions to magnify time pressure during the exam. Who knows if it's actually true, but it sure sounds like something they'd do.

And from personal experience, I really do feel like a greater percentage of correct answers in parallels and longish principles tend to be D and E than A and B, though I suppose one could counter by saying that the distribution of correct answers tend to be that way anyway.

I agree with GeePee that deciding which answer choice you should read next is a firm 'no', but if you do it without hesitation, I personally don't see anything wrong with it. Additionally I also read (in Powerscore maybe?) that psychometricians try putting tempting trap answers right before the credited one, so if those claims are true, there may be some value in going out of order for all questions, so long as you don't waste time doing so.

There are definitely more important things to worry about in studying for the LSAT than this though..

[superserial]

the content of most answer choices shouldn't change your mind on what the correct answer is if you're properly prepared, unless you've approached a question incorrectly. you also should be reading all the answer choices for LR and RC (LG you often definitively know the answer before looking at the choices); reading them in order is probably the most time-efficient approach, unless you've consistently approached MC tests differently.