SAT OwlQuestion bank / Central Ideas and Details
Economists studying microloans, small loans offered to people with little access to banks, initially reported that the loans dramatically raised household incomes. Later, larger studies that randomly assigned access to loans told a more modest story, finding that average incomes among borrowers rose only slightly. Economist Priya Raman notes, however, that these averages hide wide variation. A minority of borrowers who already ran businesses expanded them substantially, while most borrowers used the loans to manage irregular expenses rather than to start new ventures.
Which choice best states the main idea of the text?
Raman argues that microloans have no measurable effect on borrowers' lives.
Raman claims that the early studies of microloans were more reliable than the later studies.
Raman contends that microloans should be offered only to people who already run businesses.
Raman suggests that the modest average effect of microloans conceals large differences in how borrowers benefited.
Show answer and explanation
Answer: D
The text moves from early claims of big gains to later findings of small average gains. Raman's point, introduced with "however," is that the average hides variation: some borrowers expanded businesses while most used loans for expenses. Choice D states this.
Choice C is a policy idea a reader might draw, but Raman only describes how outcomes differed; she makes no recommendation about who should receive loans.
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