Question

It is a familiar scene these days: employees taking newly laid-off co-workers out for a drink for comfort. But which side deserves sympathy more, the jobless or the still employed? On March 6, researchers at a conference at the University of Cambridge heard data suggesting it's the latter.

Brendan Burchell, a Cambridge sociologist, presented his analysis based on various surveys conducted across Europe. The data suggest that employed people who feel insecure in their jobs show similar levels of anxiety and depression as those who are unemployed. Although a newly jobless person's mental health may“bottom out" after about six months, and then even begin to improve, the mental state of people who are continuously worried about losing their job “just continues to get worse and worse", Burchell says.

Evolutionary psychologists support this theory by arguing that human beings feel more stress during times of insecurity because they sense an immediate but invisible threat. Patients have been known to experience higher levels of anxiety,for example, while waiting for examination results than knowing what they are suffering from-even if the result is cancer. It's better to get the bad news and start doing something about it rather than wait with anxiety. When the uncertainty continues, people stay in a nonstop “fight or flight" response, which leads to damaging stress.

But not every employee in insecure industries has such a discouraging view,Burchell says. In general, women get on better. While reporting higher levels of anxiety than men when directly questioned, women scored lower in stress on the GHQ 12, even when they had a job they felt insecure about losing. As Burchell explains, “For women, most studies show that any job-it doesn't matter

whether it is secure or insecure-gives psychological improvement over unemployment. " Burchell supposes that the difference in men is that they tend to feel pressure not only to be employed, but also to be the primary breadwinner, and that more of a man's self-worth depends on his job.

1.Why do researchers think the still employed deserve sympathy more?

A. They have to do more work since then.

B. They have no chance to find better jobs.

C. They have to work with inexperienced workers.

D. They constantly worry about losing their jobs.

2.What is most likely to cause a “fight or flight" response?

A. Not having a paid job.

B. Fierce competition for jobs.

C. Not knowing what will happen.

D. Pressure to work longer hours.

3.What will the writer talk about following the last paragraph?

A. Advice on preparing a job interview.

B. Advice to those in insecure industries.

C. Some knowledge of psychology.

D. Difference in men and women.

4. What could be the best title for the text?

A. Is it less stressful to get laid off than stay on?

B. Should greater sympathy be given to the jobless?

C. Do employees bear more stress than ever before?

D. Do men or women show higher levels of anxiety?

Answer

1.D

2.C

3.B

4.A

【解析】

试题分析：本文讲述了在职的人比下岗的人精神压力更大，更需要同情。

1.D细节理解题。根据第二段最后一句the mental state of people who are continuously worried about losing their job “just continues to get worse and worse"可知，担心下岗的在职的人员的精神状态会越来越差。故选D。

2.C 细节理解题。根据第三段最后一句When the uncertainty continues, people stay in a nonstop “fight or flight" response, which leads to damaging stress.可知，当不确定一直继续的时候，人们会一直处于“逃跑还是战斗”的反应当中。故选C。

3.B推理判断题。全文讲述的是人们在没有保障的行业中的精神状态，这是背景，也就是提出问题。那么接下来就应该对在没有保障行业中的人们的提出建议。故选B。

4.But which side deserves sympathy more, the jobless

or the still employed? On March 6, researchers at a conference at the University of Cambridge heard data suggesting it's the latter.可知在职的人比下岗的人精神压力更大，更需要同情。这是文章的中心句，这与选项A相照应。故选A。

【名师点睛】

选择标题在英语阅读理解题中属主旨大意题，是深层理解题，它要求考生在通读全文的基础上，认真分析主人公的特定心态、文章大意及作者的写作意图。通常情况下，标题具有概括性、针对性、醒目性的特点。所谓概括性，就是指标题应在最大程度上覆盖全文，囊括文章的主要内容，体现文章的主题。针对性是对标题外延的一种界定，标题要直接指向文章的主要特点。而醒目性是为了吸引读者的注意力，唤起读者对文章阅读的兴趣。

一、确定最佳标题的方法

在阅读文章时，要注意文章中反复出现或强调的信息，寻找与文章大多数内容相关的信息，找出覆盖全文的核心词汇，看选项内容是否切中文章的中心论题，也就是要看选项内容与作者的写作目的是否一致。如31题，文章反复出现的单词是stress，这与选项A中的stressful相照应。

二、寻找文章的主题句

了解文章主要论题的关键是找到全文的主题句。主题句通常在文章首段，但是也可能在文章的末段、在文章的某一段落，或者分散在文章的各个段落中。如果每个段落都有主题句，那么把各段落的主题句的中心思想集中起来，即为全文的主题句。本文的中心句在首段的末句But which side deserves sympathy more, the jobless or the still employed? On March 6, researchers at a conference at the University of Cambridge heard data suggesting it's the latter.这就是对标题“Is it less stressful to get laid off than stay on?”的回答。

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