Question

    Low self-esteem makes us feel bad about ourselves. But did you know that over time it also can cause the development of serious mental conditions such as depression?

Self-esteem is, very simply, the set of feelings you have about yourself. It’s developed by your experiences, thoughts, feelings, and relationships.

Unlike self-knowledge, which refers to how much you know about yourself, the core of self-esteem is formed around whether you like yourself or not.

Depression is much more than just feeling sad. It consume your energy, makes everyday activities difficult and interferes with your eating and sleeping patterns. Psychotherapy and/or medication are highly effective in treating depression.

There are several types of depressive disorders, including major depression, persistent depressive disorder, psychotic depression, postpartum depression, and seasonal affective disorder (SAD).

Clinicians use low self-esteem as one possible symptom when they diagnose the psychiatric condition of major depressive disorder. They don’t necessarily care whether low self-esteem causes the depression or vice versa.

However, personality researchers have long wondered about the chicken-and-egg problem of self-esteem and depression. Certainly, if you dislike yourself, you’ll be more likely to be depressed. Conversely, if you’re depressed, you’ll be more likely to feel bad about who you are as a person.

The only way to disentangle the highly related concepts of self-esteem and depression is through longitudinal research, in which people are followed up over time. A study on depression, conducted by University of Basel researchers Julia Sowislo and Ulrich Orth, contrasted the competing directions of self-esteem to depression vs depression to self-esteem.

The findings almost all overwhelmingly support the vulnerability model of self-esteem and depression. Over time, low self-esteem is a risk factor for depression, regardless of who is tested and how. The study indicated that low self-esteem causes depression but not vice versa.

Therefore, if a person has low self-esteem, there’s an increased risk of developing depression. This is a very important discovery because it shows that improving a person’s self-esteem can make him or her feel better.

1.According to the article, which of the following statements is true?

A.Self-esteem can make us feel bad about ourselves.

B.Low self-esteem is a series of feelings about yourself.

C.The core of self-knowledge is formed around whether you like yourself or not.

D.Depression consumes your energy and interferes with your daily life.

2.Which of the following words is closest to “the chicken and egg problem” mean?

A.Mother child relationship. B.Cooking relationship.

C.Causal relationship. D.Primary and secondary relations.

3.What can we infer from Julia Sowislo and Ulrich Orth’s research?

A.Clinicians don’t necessarily care whether low self-esteem causes the depression.

B.Low self-esteem must lead to depression.

C.Having a strong self-esteem is an important factor in avoiding depression.

D.There are many ways to improve one’s self-esteem.

4.If a person wants to get rid of the low self-esteem control, which of the following methods is wrong?

A.Establish the right mindset and believe that you can do it.

B.Compare yourself with someone who is much better than yourself all the time.

C.Establish the goal, step by step toward the goal.

D.Look at the world in your spare time and feel the beauty around you.

Answer

1.D

2.C

3.C

4.B

【解析】

本文是一篇说明文。文章主要说明了研究人员进行了一项研究发现，自卑是抑郁症的一个风险因素，自卑会导致抑郁，反之亦然。文章说明了抑郁会对人产生的不好影响，最后还就如何摆脱自卑提出了建议。

1.

细节理解题。根据第四段中It consume your energy, makes everyday activities difficult and interferes(妨碍)with your eating and sleeping patterns.可知它消耗你的能量，使日常活动困难，干扰你的饮食和睡眠模式。由此可知，D选项“抑郁消耗你的精力，干扰你的日常生活”正确。故选D。

2.

词义猜测题。根据第七段中Certainly, if you dislike yourself, you’ll be more likely to be depressed. Conversely, if you’re depressed, you’ll be more likely to feel bad about who you are as a person.可知当然，如果你不喜欢自己，你会更容易沮丧。相反，如果你感到沮丧，你会更容易对自己是谁感到难过。由此可知，抑郁与自卑是相辅相成的，是因果关系，反之亦然。所以“the chicken and egg problem”在意思上最接近“因果关系”。故选C。

3.

推理判断题。根据倒数第二段中The study indicated that low self-esteem causes depression but not vice versa.可知研究表明，自卑会导致抑郁，反之亦然。由此从Julia Sowislo和Ulrich Orth的研究中可推知，强烈的自尊感是避免抑郁的一个重要因素。故选C。

4.

推理判断题。根据第三段Unlike self-knowledge, which refers to how much you know about yourself, the core of self-esteem is formed around whether you like yourself or not.可知与自我认识不同，自我认识指的是你对自己了解多少，自尊的核心是围绕着你是否喜欢自己而形成的。以及第七段中Certainly, if you dislike yourself, you’ll be more likely to be depressed. Conversely, if you’re depressed, you’ll be more likely to feel bad about who you are as a person.可知当然，如果你不喜欢自己，你会更容易沮丧。相反，如果你感到沮丧，你会更容易对自己是谁感到难过。由此可推知，如果一个人想摆脱自卑的控制，要先喜欢自己，而B选项“总是和比自己好得多的人比较”是一种不喜欢自己的表现，是摆脱自卑控制错误的做法。故选B。