Argument200【0806G desperado小组】第十次作业by坐照

wangyu0920UID: 199396

TOPIC: ARGUMENT200 - Statistics collected from dentists indicate that three times more men than women faint while visiting the dentist. This evidence suggests that men are more likely to be distressed about having dental work done than women are. Thus, dentists who advertise to attract patients should target the male consumer and emphasize both the effectiveness of their anesthetic techniques and the sensitivity of their staff to nervous or suffering patients.
WORDS: 372       DATE: 2007-12-18 20:33:17

1.         统计数据不可信。没有指明样本数量，男女比例，病情特征
2.         广告只针对男性，忽略了女性也是很大的潜在客户群体，她们可能由于其他原因，患病了却没有去诊所
3.         影响患者选择诊所的行为因素很多，只强调麻醉技术和工作人员的敏感未必能保证吸引病人来就诊

In this argument, the arguer recommends that dentists' advertisement should target the male consumer and should emphasize both the effectiveness of their anesthetic techniques and the sensitivity of their staff. This recommendation is based on the statistics which indicates that three times more men that women faint while visiting the dentist. However, I find the evidence is insufficient and hence does not lend solid support to what the arguer assumes.

To begin with, the statistical evidence lacks credibility when the arguer fails to provide further information about the patients. First of all, it is insufficient to assert that men are likely to be distressed than women when the arguer fails to provide the sample number of the statistics. It is doubtable that whether they are representative of all the male and female patients. Secondly, it is entirely possible that much more male patients contributing to the statistics, which could be unreliable because of a disproportionate number of patients. Thirdly, perhaps the male patients suffer more pain through the treating process than the female due to their poorer conditions.

Moreover, even if more men than women faint while visiting the dentist, the arguer fails to take into account that women are still large amount of potential consumers. Perhaps the female patients who visit the dentist is a small part of all the women who suffer from toothache. Many of them might not visit the dentist due to some certain reasons such as fear, distrust, although it is necessary for them to do so.

Finally, even though men are the main consumers for the dentist, the arguer unjustifiably assumes that the male patients would be attracted by anesthetic techniques and sensitivity of their staff rather than other factors. Perhaps the men tend to care about the hygienic conditions or the costs of the treatment. After all, there are so many elements which influence the patients' consuming behaviors that it is questionable to assume that the male patients would visit the dentist when they see the advertisement.

In conclusion, this argument is not well supported as it stands. To make the argument more convincing the arguer would have to provide more evidence that (1) how many patients contribute to the statistics and whether they are representative of all the dental patients (2) how many women visit the dentist when they suffering from the toothache (3) what other factors that the male patients care about besides the anesthetic techniques and the sensitivity of the staff.