Critical Reasoning

When unscrupulous people shoplift, a viciuos cycle results. Retailers must raise their prices in order to make up for the lost sales, and the higher prices encourage more people to shoplift. This vicious cycle hurts honest consumers worst of all, because they have to pay higher prices.

The vicious cycle described above could not happen unless which of the following is trure?

A. Shoplifters usuall steal only items that they need but cannot afford.
B. Retailers do not take shoplifting losses into account when they initially set their prices.
C. The best way for retailers to address shoplifting is by punishing shoplifters to the fullest extent of the law.
D. Some people would shoplift no matter how low retailers set their prices.
E. It costs retailers more to pay security guards to prevent shoplifting than just to absorb the cost of occasional losses due to theft.

Perhaps I misunderstand something but I interpret question stem as ' if the correct answer choice happens, then shoplifting cycle continues to haapen' and then my thought and OA is in the opposite direction. So, can someone help explain how to attack this question, pls?

OA is B

Use principle of negation.....

Retailers take shoplifting losses into account when the set prices ...Acc to argument this the reason rates increase... thus if this is not true rates wont increase..shoplifting wont increase and thus no vicious cycle will occur.

A. Shoplifters usuall steal only items that they need but cannot afford.
(-) has no relation with cause effect...
B. Retailers do not take shoplifting losses into account when they initially set their prices.
(+)
C. The best way for retailers to address shoplifting is by punishing shoplifters to the fullest extent of the law.
(-) we are not concrened with steps taken to curb the effect
D. Some people would shoplift no matter how low retailers set their prices.
(-) Irrelevant
E. It costs retailers more to pay security guards to prevent shoplifting than just to absorb the cost of occasional losses due to theft.
(-) Out of scope

imo b

HI auntsom,
i think that we must understand the question fully before choose the option,
you can negate the question to understand,
it means that if which of the following is true, the vicious cycle could not happen? (what of following will stop the vicious cycle?)
A, specific ( Irrelevance)
B, this can make honest people do not shoplift
C, this can treat shoplifter, however, if the retail price is still high, there may be shoplifting,
D, E: OOS

I would go for B as well. It seems the best and safest among the rest.