Which of the following is a shortcoming of the laboratory experimental approach to understanding human development?

A) It is often difficult to randomly assign subjects to different treatment conditions.
B) Experiments rarely inform us about cause-and-effect relationships.
C) This technique does not work well for the study of aggression.
D) The results may not be applicable outside the experimental situation.

The laboratory experimental approach involves studying human development in a controlled setting, which often does not reflect real-life situations. As a result, the results obtained may not be applicable outside the experimental situation, making it a major shortcoming of this approach. The random assignment of subjects to different treatment conditions (A) is one of the strengths of this approach. Experiments are designed to establish cause-and-effect relationships, and therefore, experiments do inform us about cause-and-effect relationships (B). While laboratory experiments may not be suitable for the study of aggression, it is not a shortcoming of this approach as there are other ways through which aggression can be studied in a laboratory setting.