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Despite stated claims of global relevance, much major research on income inequality performed in the 2010s suffered from a myopic focus on a few countries in North America and Western Europe, partly due to limited data availability. Researchers would later blank this shortcoming after gaining new access to banking records located in nations in Africa, such as Tunisia, and Eastern Europe, such as Hungary.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?
Explanation
Choice C is the best answer because it most logically completes the text’s discussion of research on income inequality in the 2010s. In this context, "mitigate" means to make less severe or reduce the negative effects of something. The text first identifies a shortcoming in the research: a "myopic focus on a few countries" despite claims of "global relevance." The text then explains that researchers later gained access to new data from previously excluded regions (Africa and Eastern Europe). This context supports the idea that with these new data, researchers would be able to reduce, or mitigate, the identified shortcoming by incorporating a broader range of geographic regions into their studies of income inequality.
Choice A is incorrect because in this context, "presuppose" would mean to assume in advance that something is true, and it wouldn’t make logical sense to say that researchers later assumed as true in advance a shortcoming they had already encountered. Choice B is incorrect because in this context, "categorize" would mean to classify or place into groups. The text indicates that researchers did something about the shortcoming that characterized research on income inequality in the 2010s—limited geographic scope—after they gained access to new data from previously excluded regions. Categorizing a shortcoming doesn’t require access to or analysis of new data; it could be done without any new information, but by analyzing new data, researchers went beyond merely categorizing the shortcoming and instead took action to address it. Choice D is incorrect because in this context, "validate" would mean to confirm or substantiate something. The text indicates that researchers did something about a known shortcoming of research on income inequality in the 2010s—limited geographic scope—after they gained access to new data from previously excluded regions. Confirming an already known shortcoming doesn’t require access to or analysis of new data; it could be done without any new information, but by analyzing new data, researchers went beyond merely validating the shortcoming and instead took action to make the shortcoming less severe.