Final answer:
The statement that electronegativity increases from left to right across a period and decreases from top to bottom within a group is the generally true pattern observed in the periodic table.
Step-by-step explanation:
The correct answer to which statement is generally true about electronegativity is:
C) Electronegativity increases as we move left to right and decreases as we move top to bottom.
This is explained by the periodic trend in electronegativity where:
- Electronegativity generally increases from left to right across a period. This is due to an increase in nuclear charge, causing the nucleus to be more effective in pulling the bonding electron pair to itself.
- Electronegativity values generally decrease from top to bottom within a group, due to increasing atomic size making the nucleus less effective at attracting bonding electrons.
For example, within the halogens, fluorine (F) has the highest electronegativity value, while values decrease for chlorine (Cl), bromine (Br), and iodine (I) as we move down the group.