Marketing analysts at a consumer research firm are studying shopping behaviors across different holiday periods, exploring whether socioeconomic chara...
GMAT Craft and Structure : (Structure) Questions
Marketing analysts at a consumer research firm are studying shopping behaviors across different holiday periods, exploring whether socioeconomic characteristics like household earnings and regional distribution affect consumer choices in _______ ways—that is, whether these factors are associated with markedly distinct expenditure trends.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?
predictable
significant
concerning
minimal
Step 1: Decode and Map the Passage
Create Passage Analysis Table
| Text from Passage | Analysis |
|---|---|
| "Marketing analysts at a consumer research firm are studying shopping behaviors across different holiday periods," |
|
| "exploring whether socioeconomic characteristics like household earnings and regional distribution affect consumer choices in" |
|
| "[MISSING WORD]" |
|
| "ways—that is, whether these factors are associated with markedly distinct expenditure trends." |
|
Provide Passage Architecture & Core Elements
Main Point: Marketing analysts are researching whether socioeconomic factors create notably different spending patterns during holidays.
Argument Flow: We start with researchers studying holiday shopping, then learn they are investigating whether income and location affect consumer choices in some particular way, and finally get clarification that they are looking for clearly different spending patterns.
Step 2: Interpret the Question Precisely
This is a fill-in-the-blank question asking us to choose the best logical connector. The answer must create the right relationship between what comes before and after the blank.
Step 3: Prethink the Answer
- The missing word needs to describe what kind of "ways" the analysts are studying
- We know from the clarification that they are looking for "markedly distinct expenditure trends"
- The word should match the intensity of "markedly distinct" and describe the type of differences they expect to find
- The phrase "markedly distinct" suggests substantial, noticeable differences
- The right answer should convey the idea of meaningful or substantial ways
predictable
✗ Incorrect
- This suggests the ways would be expected or foreseeable
- Contradicts the research purpose - if patterns were predictable, there would be little need to study whether factors are associated with markedly distinct trends
significant
✓ Correct
- Perfectly matches "markedly distinct expenditure trends"
- Makes logical sense for research - they are studying whether factors affect choices in meaningful, substantial ways
- Aligns with the research goal of finding notable differences in spending patterns
concerning
✗ Incorrect
- Introduces a negative judgment that does not appear anywhere in the passage
- The passage maintains a neutral, research-focused tone
minimal
✗ Incorrect
- Directly contradicts "markedly distinct expenditure trends"
- If the ways were minimal, the trends could not be markedly distinct
- Creates a logical inconsistency within the sentence