Hello Everyone!
Let's tackle this question, one issue at a time, and narrow it down to the correct choice quickly! To get started, here is the original question with the major differences between the options highlighted in orange:
The use of lie detectors is based on the assumption that lying produces emotional reactions in an individual that, in turn, create unconscious physiological responses.
(A) that, in turn, create unconscious physiological responses
(B) that creates unconscious physiological responses in turn
(C) creating, in turn, unconscious physiological responses
(D) to create, in turn, physiological responses that are unconscious
(E) who creates unconscious physiological responses in turn
After taking a quick glance over the options, there are a lot of differences we can focus on. Here are just a couple to start:
1. creates / create / creating (subject-verb agreement)
2. placement of the phrase "in turn" (idioms)
Let's start off with #1 on our list: subject-verb agreement. To find out whether we need a singular or plural verb here, we need to ask ourselves, "WHAT is creating unconscious physiological responses?" Next, we need to look to the original sentence for clues:
The use of lie detectors is based on the assumption that lying produces emotional reactions in an individual that, in turn, create unconscious physiological responses.
Now that we know the verb is tied to the plural subject "reactions," we need to make sure the options use plural verbs to match:
(A) that, in turn, create unconscious physiological responses
(B) that creates unconscious physiological responses in turn
(C) creating, in turn, unconscious physiological responses (No verb issues, but let's save this one for later anyway)
(D) to create, in turn, physiological responses that are unconscious
(E) who creates unconscious physiological responses in turn
We can eliminate options B & E because they don't use proper subject-verb agreement. Now that we have it narrowed down to only 3 options, let's move on to another issue on our list.
Let's focus now on the placement of the phrase "in turn." In English, we use this phrase to indicate cause-effect among a series of actions:
X causes Y, and Y, in turn, causes Z
If we look at the original sentence, we can get some clues as to what X, Y, and Z are in our idiom:
The use of lie detectors is based on the assumption that lying produces emotional reactions in an individual that, in turn, create unconscious physiological responses.
X = lying
Y = emotional reactions
Z = unconscious physiological responses
Now that we know what to plug into our equation, let's see which options handle this idiom correctly. To make it easier to spot, we've included the rest of the phrase for you:
(A) lying produces emotional reactions in an individual that, in turn, create unconscious physiological responses
X (lying) causes Y (emotional reactions), and Y (emotional reactions), in turn, causes Z (physiological responses) = CORRECT!
(C) lying produces emotional reactions in an individual creating, in turn, unconscious physiological responses
X (lying) causes Y (emotional reactions), and Y (emotional reactions) causing, in turn, Z (physiological responses) = WRONG!
(D) lying produces emotional reactions in an individual to create, in turn, physiological responses that are unconscious
X (lying) causes Y (emotional reactions) and Y (emotional reactions) cause, in turn, Z (physiological responses) = WRONG!
There you have it - option A is the correct choice! It uses proper subject-verb agreement, and the idiom (X causes Y, and Y, in turn, causes Z) is written correctly!
Don't study for the GMAT. Train for it.
