Despite the generalizations about human behavior they have produced, many studies of behavioral psychology have used highly unrepresentative subject pools: students at the colleges and universities where the researchers are employed. To ______situation, it is necessary to actively recruit subjects from diverse backgrounds and locations. this
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?
sanction
ameliorate
rationalize
postulate
The correct answer and explanation is:
The correct answer is ameliorate.
Explanation:
The sentence discusses how many behavioral psychology studies use unrepresentative subject pools, particularly college students. The key idea is that in order to improve or correct this limitation, a more diverse group of subjects should be recruited.
- Sanction means to approve or impose a penalty for something, neither of which fits the context of improving the situation.
- Rationalize involves justifying or explaining something, often in a way that avoids addressing its flaws. This doesn’t fit because the sentence is suggesting an active improvement to the situation.
- Postulate refers to suggesting or assuming something as a basis for reasoning, which doesn’t apply in this context since the sentence talks about improving, not proposing.
Ameliorate, on the other hand, means to make something better or more tolerable. In the context of the sentence, it directly suggests that in order to address the problem of unrepresentative subject pools, action must be taken to improve or “ameliorate” the situation. This fits the context perfectly, as the solution is to recruit subjects from diverse backgrounds and locations, which would enhance the representativeness of the studies and make them more scientifically valid.