Medical researchers have been studying a promising new treatment for chronic fatigue syndrome. Initial trials showed encouraging results, but the...
GMAT Craft and Structure : (Structure) Questions
Medical researchers have been studying a promising new treatment for chronic fatigue syndrome. Initial trials showed encouraging results, but the participant pool was small and lacked demographic diversity. While pharmaceutical companies have expressed interest in the findings, the limited scope of the data means that researchers can only ______ about the treatment's broader effectiveness.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?
conclude definitively
hypothesize
publish extensively
recommend widely
Step 1: Decode and Map the Passage
Part A: Passage Analysis Table
| Text from Passage | Analysis |
|---|---|
| "Medical researchers have been studying a promising new treatment for chronic fatigue syndrome." |
|
| "Initial trials showed encouraging results, but the participant pool was small and lacked demographic diversity." |
|
| [MISSING WORD/PHRASE] |
|
| "about the treatment's broader effectiveness." |
|
Part B: Passage Architecture & Core Elements
Main Point: Despite promising initial results, the limited scope of chronic fatigue syndrome research data restricts what researchers can definitively claim about the treatment's wider applicability.
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 word must reflect the relationship between "limited scope of data" and what researchers can do about "broader effectiveness"
- Since the data is limited (small sample, lacking diversity), researchers cannot make strong, definitive claims about how the treatment works for everyone
- The right answer should show uncertainty and restraint
conclude definitively
✗ Incorrect
- This suggests making firm, final judgments, which directly contradicts the "limited scope" constraint mentioned in the passage
hypothesize
✓ Correct
- Means to form educated guesses or provisional theories based on available evidence
- Perfectly matches the constraint of limited data
publish extensively
✗ Incorrect
- Refers to how much researchers write, not the logical relationship between limited data and effectiveness claims
recommend widely
✗ Incorrect
- Suggests broad endorsement, which contradicts the limitation established by small, non-diverse participant pool