In the following passage, some of the words have been left out. Read the passage carefully and select the correct answer for the given blank out of the four alternatives. Those who argue in this way support their case by pointing to the lack of a general consensus of opinion which obtains in many parts of the field which the philosopher regards as his own, and also by pointing out that, even within this field, there is a growing tendency on the part of certain sciences to separate themselves from philosophy and become independent. Thus the psychologist and the logician are sometimes very anxious to have it understood that they belong among the scientists and not among the philosophers. Fill in the blank: _____________ who argue in this way support.

Introduction / Context:
This cloze test is taken from a passage discussing the relationship between philosophy and the sciences. Certain critics argue that philosophy is not a genuine science because of a lack of consensus. The sentence we must complete describes the people who argue in this way. The blank appears at the very beginning of the passage.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• The full sentence, with the blank, is: _____________ who argue in this way support their case by pointing to the lack of a general consensus of opinion.
• The phrase who argue in this way clearly refers to people, a plural group.
• The sentence continues by giving details of how these people support their case.
• We need a word or phrase before who that grammatically and logically fits a plural group of people.

Concept / Approach:
The main concept here is pronoun and determiner usage in English, especially demonstrative pronouns. The four options are This, That, The and Those. The relative clause who argue in this way requires an antecedent that refers to multiple people who hold a particular opinion. Among the demonstratives, those is naturally used to refer to such a group.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Note that the clause who argue in this way is plural and refers to people, not to a single person or abstract idea.Step 2: Consider each option in context: This who argue..., That who argue..., The who argue..., Those who argue....Step 3: Observe that English normally uses Those who argue in this way, meaning the people who make such an argument.Step 4: Reject options that sound ungrammatical or do not fit standard patterns.

Verification / Alternative check:
To verify, think of similar sentences: Those who work hard succeed; those who oppose the plan must explain why. This pattern matches our sentence perfectly. None of the other options can replace those naturally. This is typically followed by a singular noun (this person) or clause, not by who used for a group. That who also sounds incorrect. The who is ungrammatical because the requires a noun, not a relative pronoun.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Option A, This, is singular and usually points to a specific thing or idea. This who argue is grammatically incorrect.
Option B, That, is also singular and does not combine properly with who in this structure when referring to a group of people.
Option C, The, must be followed by a noun (for example, the people who argue), so using it directly before who is not acceptable.

Common Pitfalls:
A common mistake is not paying attention to number (singular versus plural) and trying to force a singular demonstrative into a plural context. Another pitfall is to ignore the full relative clause and choose a word based solely on familiarity, rather than on the correct grammatical pattern.

Final Answer:
The correct pronoun to introduce a group of people described by who argue in this way is those. Therefore, the correct answer is Those.