Explanation
Correct answer: A.
Choice A is the best answer because it most logically completes the text’s discussion of how logo shapes affect consumer attitudes toward brands. In this context, “a contributing factor” means an element that helps produce a particular outcome. The text indicates that researchers studied how consumers develop attitudes toward brands and found that logo shape affects those attitudes: rounded logos led consumers to view brands as “significantly more approachable” than angular logos did, even when the brand names were the same. This context supports the idea that logo shape is a contributing factor to consumer attitudes toward brands—that is, it helps influence how consumers perceive brands.
Why the other choices are wrong
Choice B
Choice B is incorrect because describing logo shapes as “an analogous case,” or an instance comparable to another instance, wouldn’t make sense in this context. The text doesn’t mention any factor other than logo shape, and thus the text doesn’t provide another case (analogous or otherwise) against which to compare the effect of logo shape.
Choice C
Choice C is incorrect because describing logo shapes as “an overlooked effect,” or a result that has been disregarded, wouldn’t make sense in this context. The text is focused on describing observations about the effect of logo shape on consumer attitudes toward brands, but at no point does it suggest that this effect has been overlooked or disregarded.
Choice D
Choice D is incorrect because describing logo shapes as “a surprising paradox,” or a self-contradictory finding, wouldn’t make sense in this context. The finding that different logo shapes produce different consumer attitudes is straightforward and doesn’t exhibit any internal contradiction.