Question

The commissioner of a professional sports league dictated that teams could not put players on the field who had a greater than 20 percent chance of suffering a career-ending spinal injury during competition. The commissioner justified this decision as a way to protect players from injury while protecting the league from lawsuits. Which of the following, if true, would most undermine the effectiveness of the commissioner’s new policy?

• A. Spinal injuries can result in paralysis, loss of fine motor skills, and even death.
• B. The previous year, more than seven players in the league suffered career-ending spinal injuries.
• C. The players’ union agrees that the risk of injury is an inevitable part of playing the game at a professional level.
• D. There is no scientifically valid method for determining the likelihood of any player suffering a career-ending spinal injury at any given time.
• E. Players barred from playing because of this new regulation will be entitled to compensation for lost wages at a level determined by the commissioner’s office.

Hint:

When evaluating a policy, focus on the practical feasibility of the criteria used to enforce the policy.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is D

Step 1: Understand the question.
The policy’s effectiveness depends on accurately assessing the risk of career-ending injuries. If there is no reliable method to determine this risk, the policy may be ineffective.
Step 2: Analyze the answer choices.
- (A) This information is relevant to the severity of injuries but does not directly impact the policy’s effectiveness in terms of assessment.
- (B) This provides context for the policy but does not affect its ability to assess injury risk accurately.
- (C) This statement supports the inherent risks of the game but does not affect the policy’s method of determining injury risk.
- (D) This statement directly undermines the policy’s effectiveness, as it implies the policy cannot accurately assess players’ injury risks.
- (E) This option addresses compensation but does not affect the ability to assess injury risk.
Conclusion:
Option (D) directly undermines the policy’s effectiveness by highlighting the lack of a valid method for assessing the risk of injury.