What is "generalization" and how to avoid it?

[Nonverbis]

This is from the book "IELTS Advantage writing skills" by Richard Brown.



I'm interested in exercise 2 here, but I provide you with a screenshot of the whole page so that you should understand the context.

The answer key:



First of all, for me the sentences in the task did not look too general. They looked acceptable. But anyway, I did something like this:

"Crime rate correlates with unemployment rate, the higher tha latter, the higher the former".

But the answer key is just about adding some adverb or a modal verb. And the sentence is as general as before.

Could you help me understand what "generalization" means? The answer keys are just a bit more sophisticated grammatically.
Does this all mean that we just should enrich our grammatical constructions and use more adverbs, which is a sign of an advanced learner?

 

[teechar]

That website/book should have used the word "generalized" instead of "general".
It is talking about qualification. I'll explain that to you with an example.

It is difficult to find a job in a foreign country.

That statement is absolute (too strong). It implies that anyone who is in any country that is not their own will (definitely) encounter difficulty when trying to get a job. In reality, that is not always true. Therefore, you should avoid making such absolute/sweeping statements, because they are difficult (or even impossible) to prove/defend. You can use a variety of techniques to qualify your idea. For example:

It can be difficult to find a job in a foreign country.
It is sometimes difficult to find a job in a foreign country.
or even,
In some countries, it can be difficult for a foreigner to find a job.

When you use qualification, the reader is much more likely to accept your assertion, and you (as the writer of the sentence) are in a good position to stand by it (defend it).

 

[jutfrank]

I completely understand your point, Nonverbis, and I agree. The phrasing 'avoiding generalizations' is very badly expressed. As teechar explains very well above, the aim is to qualify your generalizations, not to avoid them.