Question

    If you’ve ever found yourself scratching your head over a decision when the answer is obvious, now there’s a scientific reason behind it. “The problem is ‘decision fatigue’ — a psychological phenomenon that influences the quality of your choices after a long day of decision making, causing indecision or poor choices.” says Evan Polman, a leading psychologist.

Physicians who have been on the job for several hours, for example, are more likely to prescribe antibiotics (开抗生素) to patients when it's unwise to do so. “Probably it’s because it’s simple and easy to write a prescription and consider a patient case closed rather than investigate further,” Polman says.

But interestingly, decision fatigue goes away when you are making the decision for someone else. When people imagine themselves as advisers and imagine their own choices as belonging to someone else, they feel less tired and rely less on decision shortcuts to make those choices. “By taking upon the role of adviser rather than decision maker, one does not suffer the consequences of decision fatigue,” he says. “It’s as if there’s something fun and relieving about making someone else’s choice.”

“Getting input from others not only offers a fresh idea and thought process; it often also includes riskier choices. While this sounds undesirable, it can be quite good,” says Polman. “When people experience decision fatigue, they have a tendency to choose to go with the status quo (现状),” he says. “But the status quo can be problematic, since a change in the course of action can sometimes be important and lead to a positive outcome.” In order to achieve a successful outcome or reward, some level of risk is almost always essential. “People with decision fatigue will likely choose to do nothing over something,” he says, “That’s not to say that risk is always good, but it is related to taking action whereas decision fatigue certainly leads to inaction.”

“Just because you can make good choices for others doesn’t mean you’ll do the same for yourself,” Polman cautions. “Research has found that women negotiate higher salaries for others than they do for themselves,” he says, adding that people slip in and out of decision roles.

1.Decision fatigue may cause people to make decisions that are_______________.

A.reasonable B.objective

C.unwise D.smart

2.Which of the following may be made by a person with decision fatigue?

A.A consumer buys a lot of food to prepare for a dinner.

B.A judge makes a less convincing judgment late in the day.

C.A student plans to finish his math homework in the morning.

D.A physician advises the patient to drink more water after examination.

3.When do people feel less decision fatigue?

A.When they take decision shortcuts.

B.When they have advisers to turn to.

C.When they have major decisions to make.

D.When they help others to make decisions.

4.What are people likely to do when decision fatigue sets in?

A.They stop trying anything new.

B.They adopt a totally new idea.

C.They tend to make risky decisions.

D.They turn to physicians for advice.

5.What does Polman say about taking some risks in decision making?

A.It will often end in regret.

B.It is likely to cause serious consequences.

C.It will enable people to be more creative.

D.It is necessary to achieve successful outcome.

Answer

1.C

2.B

3.D

4.A

5.D

【解析】

本文是一篇说明文。如果你曾经发现自己在一个答案显而易见的决定面前抓耳挠腮，那么这背后是有科学依据的。文章介绍了“决策疲劳”这一心理现象。

1.推理判断题。根据第一段中的“The problem is ‘decision fatigue’ — a psychological phenomenon that influences the quality of your choices after a long day of decision making, causing indecision or poor choices.” says Evan Polman, a leading psychologist. (“问题在于‘决策疲劳’，这是一种心理现象，在漫长的一天的决策后，会影响你的选择质量，导致优柔寡断或做出糟糕的选择。”著名心理学家埃文·波尔曼说)可知，决策疲劳可能会导致人们做出不明智的决定。故选C。

2.推理判断题。根据第一段中的“The problem is ‘decision fatigue’ — a psychological phenomenon that influences the quality of your choices after a long day of decision making, causing indecision or poor choices.” says Evan Polman, a leading psychologist. (“问题在于‘决策疲劳’，这是一种心理现象，在漫长的一天的决策后，会影响你的选择质量，导致优柔寡断或做出糟糕的选择。”著名心理学家埃文·波尔曼说)可知，在漫长的一天的决策后，会影响你的选择质量，导致优柔寡断或做出糟糕的选择。结合选项可知，B. A judge makes a less convincing judgment late in the day.(法官在当天晚些时候做出的判决不那么令人信服)符合题意，法官属于决策疲劳。故选B。

3.细节理解题。根据第三段中的But interestingly, decision fatigue goes away when you are making the decision for someone else. (但有趣的是，当你为别人做决定时，决策疲劳就会消失)可知，当人们帮助别人做决定时，他们很少会感到决策疲劳。故选D。

4.推理判断题。根据倒数第二段中的“People with decision fatigue will likely choose to do nothing over something,” he says, “That’s not to say that risk is always good, but it is related to taking action whereas decision fatigue certainly leads to inaction.”(“有决策疲劳症的人很可能会选择什么都不做，而不是去做某件事，”他说，“这并不是说风险总是好的，但它与采取行动有关，而决策疲劳肯定会导致不作为。”)可知，当决定疲劳出现时，人们很可能会停止尝试任何新事物。故选A。

5.推理判断题。根据倒数第二段中的In order to achieve a successful outcome or reward, some level of risk is almost always essential. (为了获得成功的结果或回报，一定程度的风险几乎总是必不可少的)可知，波尔曼认为在决策过程中承担一些风险是取得成功的必要条件。故选D。