Cecilia is conducting research using public health records to examine flu outbreaks among public school students. since her research does not require her to disturb people in the social context that she is studying, it is considered to be a(n

imagine me knowing the answer

d. i assume the underlined word is "role." reformat if it isn't.

explanation:

role is closest to part because when replacing words, "playing a vital decision," "playing a vital activity," and "playing a vital dollar" don't make logical sense. the only meaningful choice is "playing a vital part."

this fits one of merriam-webster's definitions of role: "a function or part performed especially in a particular operation or process."