26. What is commonly regarded as the cause of grade inflation?

26.【答案】[D] The influence of consumer culture.

【解析】根据题干信息词“grade inflation”可回文定位至首段第一句。由句子主干“Grade inflation is often considered a product of a consumer era in higher education”可知消费者至上的文化是高校成绩膨胀的源由。故D选项正确。