Final answer:
Seligman's concept of preparedness BEST accounts for the development of phobias.
Step-by-step explanation:
Seligman's concept of preparedness BEST accounts for the development of phobias (option a).
Preparedness is the idea that humans and animals are biologically predisposed to learn certain associations more readily than others due to evolutionary history. Phobias are characterized by an intense and irrational fear of specific objects or situations. According to Seligman, humans are more likely to develop phobias to things that have posed a threat throughout our evolutionary history, such as snakes or heights.
For example, an individual may develop a phobia of snakes more easily than a phobia of paperclips because the fear of snakes may have provided a survival advantage in the past.
Therefore, Seligman's concept of preparedness explains why phobias, which involve irrational fear reactions to specific stimuli, are more likely to develop than obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), schizophrenia, or major depressive disorder (MDD).