“Conventional wisdom tells us that we can feel happier if we smile or that we can get ourselves
2 . Like many writers, I’m a supreme expert at procrastination (拖延症). When I ought to be working on an assignment, with the clock ticking towards my deadline, I’ll sit there watching pointless interviews or cat videos on YouTube.
According to traditional thinking — I, along with my fellow procrastinators, have a time management problem. By this view, I haven’t fully appreciated how long my assignment is going to take and I’m not paying enough attention to how much time I’m currently wasting on videos. With better scheduling, I will stop procrastinating and get on with my work.
Increasingly, however, psychologists are realizing this is wrong. Experts in the UK have proposed that procrastination is an issue with managing our emotions, not our time. The task we’re putting off is making us feel bad — perhaps it’s boring, too difficult or we’re worried about failing — and to make ourselves feel better in the moment, we start doing something else, like watching videos.
One investigation to inspire the emotional view of procrastination was published by researchers at Case Western Reserve University. They first prompted people to feel bad (by asking them to read sad stories) and showed that this increased their tendency to procrastinate by doing puzzles or playing video games instead of preparing for the test they knew was coming. Subsequent studies by the another team also showed low mood only increases procrastination if enjoyable activities are available as a distraction.
This fresh perspective on procrastination is beginning to open up exciting new approaches to reducing the habit. An approach, which is based on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, seems especially suitable. It argues that prioritizing choices and actions that help you get closer to get things done can keep you away from the unpleasant feelings. So the next time you’re going to procrastinate, make your focus as simple as “What’s the next action?”. Focusing on this one-step question takes your mind off your feelings and onto easily achievable action. “Our research and lived experience show very clearly that once we get started, we’re typically able to keep going. Getting started is everything.”
1. Which is true according to the traditional view of procrastinators?| A．They are usually irresponsible people. |
| B．They have difficulty in concentrating. |
| C．They enjoy watching videos while writing. |
| D．They can get work done with better schedules. |
| A．Procrastination boosts your moods. |
| B．Procrastinators prefer puzzles to sad stories. |
| C．Test-takers can not escape bad emotions. |
| D．Negative emotions promote procrastination. |
| A．It shortens the process. | B．It inspires the wildest imagination. |
| C．It may relieve unpleasant feelings. | D．It can fix time management problem. |
| A．Prioritize Your To-do List | B．New Studies on Work Performance |
| C．Quit Watching Cat Videos | D．Tremendous Damage of Procrastination |
3 . Have you had a meltdown lately? An emotional meltdown isn’t exactly a medical disease.
How do you feel after you’ve had a meltdown? Do you feel embarrassed about your behavior?
While most people would rather forget a meltdown as quickly as possible, it can be a learning experience.
If you feel embarrassed about revealing your emotions in public, you might examine how you feel about your feelings. Why isn’t it okay for you to be angry, or to be sad, or to need something from someone else?
If your meltdown involved raising your voice at other people or behavior like throwing an object in the presence of others, apologize and come up with a plan to manage your emotions differently the next time you’re upset or stressed. If you find this type of behavior is common for you and you’re having difficulty managing it on your own, consider reaching to a psychologist.
| A．It can happen to anyone. |
| B．Are you a happy person? |
| C．Learn from every meltdown. |
| D．There are some negative effects about meltdown, |
| E．Shaming yourself about your emotion is not helpful. |
| F．Are you anxious about possible consequences for your outburst? |
| G．Having an emotional meltdown is never an excuse for abusive behavior. |
Rick, a ten-year-old boy, was constantly angry at everything around him. He always fought in school with the other kids. Once he had an outburst in school. Upset by something a classmate said to him, he pushed the boy, and a fight happened. When the teacher stepped in to break it up, Rick went crazy, throwing papers and books around the classroom and rushing out. His teachers couldn’t say anything that would comfort the kid. And the parents of his schoolmates were getting concerned. Rick was earning quite the reputation. After talking with school officials, Rick’s mom tried everything she could to calm Rick down.
She tried different methods until one day she came home with a canvas (画布) and paint. “What’s this?”, Rick asked. Rick’s mom handed over the painting equipment and said, “Whenever you feel angry, paint whatever you’re angry about instead of bursting out.” Rick wasn’t that happy about it but he gave it a try anyway. Over the next few weeks, the young boy created several artworks. They mostly showed disturbing images though. So his mom took all of the paintings and called Rick over so that they could talk about them. “Tell me, Rick. What are these paintings about?”
“Well, the first painting is about how some of the kids show off their new clothes and pencil cases. The next painting is about my teacher who keeps telling me about how I’m doing things wrong. And the last painting is about how one of my schoolmate’s father suggested that I change my attitude. All of them make me so angry.” Rick’s mom, in a calm voice, took Rick by her side and told him: “Don’t you see it, Rick?” “See what?” Rick asked. “You’re so angry at all of these things but not once did you try to understand why you’re getting so angry. What have all these people done to you, really?”
注意：1.续写词数应为150左右;
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Rick was lost in thought.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Rick knew it was time to change.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________5 . Your emotion helps you make sense of the world. At the core of an emotion is a subjective experience of the valence of it — what emotion scientists call “affect” (情感). Generally speaking, affect is what we are most focused on. Do you have chocolate cake in front of you? That’s good! Do you see a spider on the table! That’s bad!
Your affective reactions tell you which experiences are desirable, and which aren’t, but the total emotional experience includes all you do and think. You can learn a lot by observing and describing them. You can also learn a lot by appreciating their secret life.
The problem is: the affective features of emotions tend to dominate. Our subjective valence of emotion is almost all we can see. When emotions are only about what is pleasant or unpleasant in subjective experience right now, the more important features of emotion disappear.
If you can slow down and expand; if you stop running or clinging (沉浸其中) and adopt a sense of curiosity, emotions become more subtle and different. When fear comes up, don’t walk away so that fear dissipates. Instead, stay. Allow yourself to feel the nervousness, the sweating, and everything else that comes along with it. It is one of the hardest things to do in life, but it’s also one of the most rewarding. If you run, you are telling basic parts of your brain, “I guess this threat really was real. I better stay away from it.” You are training yourself to fear, regardless of that situation. If you cling, you are saying, “Escape from this emotion is a threat”, and since it is not a happy experience, happiness slips through your hands like sand.
Note that you can not fool yourself. Just allow the full emotion. You will never enter into their secret life until you stop running or clinging. To control your life, you need to actively train your emotions to be your ally (同盟). Observe. Describe. Appreciate. Do that and you may find you have allies for healthy living that were there all along.
1. Why does the author mention “chocolate cake” and “spider” in paragraph 1?| A．To explain the complex response of emotions. |
| B．To show the subjective experience of emotions. |
| C．To indicate the goodness and badness of the world. |
| D．To emphasize the significance of emotions in life. |
| A．The present feelings are less obvious. |
| B．The subjective emotions are less powerful. |
| C．The overall picture of emotions is easier to ignore. |
| D．The observation and description of emotions are easier. |
| A．Deepens. | B．Spreads. | C．Disappears. | D．Sticks. |
| A．The secret of emotions. | B．The subjective experience. |
| C．The importance of allies in life. | D．Magical functions of emotions. |
6 . A new study published by Dan Johnson of Washington and Lee University shows experimentally that reading fiction increases empathy (共情).
The participants were asked to read a short story and report their mood. Then, in a staged accident, the experimenter knocked over several pens and recorded whether the participants helped pick them up. They found that the more people were transported into the story, the more likely they were to help pick up the dropped pens. Those who engaged more deeply with the fictional characters also showed more empathy for the real-life person.
Empathy, like patience appears to be a character that can be improved with practice. Study has shown the more students read books, especially storybooks, the better they are at understanding the emotions of others. However, researchers at the University of Michigan reported last year that empathy among college students had declined during the past 30 years, with an especially steep drop in the last decade. The reason is plain to see.
It’s important to understand where empathy comes from in the first place. Looking at the evolution of the human mind, it has been suggested that the ability to process hypothetical scenarios (假设情景) of what another person might be thinking provided an advantage to our early ancestors. Empathy may have arisen from one of the most fundamental human characteristics—the ability to cheat.
Storytelling is essentially just a kind of art. Is Harry Potter real? No, but by projecting ourselves into his story, we’re engaging a very real part of our brain. That sense of escape or social participation often is what makes books so enjoyable. Unfortunately, books are falling out of style. The cause of this is partially due to e book sales, which have arisen greatly over the past few years and taken a share out of the physical book market without necessarily indicating a decline in reading.
Even though some of us would like to, we can’t blame the digital retailers for our decreased empathy. In fact, some people probably read more with their more convenient e-readers than ever before with hard copies. It’s the culture of reading in general that needs to change.
1. What did the experiment show?| A．The participants stressed teamwork. | B．The participants were forced to pick up pens. |
| C．A story might have an instructive effect. | D．A person lost in a story paid less attention to real life. |
| A．Limited patience | B．The lack of reading | C．Diverse emotions. | D．The social practice |
| A．The art of lying. | B．The culture of reading |
| C．The escape from the society. | D．The ability to process real information |
| A．Reading stories can increase empathy. | B．Paper books have edges over digital ones. |
| C．Writers play a trick on readers by cheating. | D．College students tend to lack understanding. |
7 . Regret is a very real reaction to a disappointing event in your life, a choice you made that can’t be changed, something you said that you can’t take back.
As with other negative emotions, it doesn’t work to avoid, deny or try to destroy regret.
You can help release these feelings of regret by practicing self-compassion (自我同情).This means reminding yourself that you are human, you are doing the best you can and you can learn from past decisions and grow.
Noticing, acknowledging and then forgiving your thoughts are a powerful step towards overcoming regret.
| A．Dealing with regret is even more difficult. |
| B．Regret is not only unpleasant, but also unhealthy. |
| C．There are basically two ways to experience regret. |
| D．But regret related to the inaction path is harder to fix. |
| E．Seeing the situation in a different way may help reduce regret. |
| F．In the long run, these strategies only increase negative feelings. |
| G．Showing this compassion to yourself can help you accept and move past the regret. |
8 . Anger is the most destructive (破坏性的) emotion. When you are
Firstly, you need to change your attitude to the way the world
| A．sad | B．happy | C．angry | D．surprised |
| A．written | B．spoken | C．read | D．heard |
| A．has worked | B．is working | C．will work | D．works |
| A．accept | B．receive | C．take | D．refuse |
| A．another | B．others | C．other | D．the other |
| A．where | B．that | C．how | D．when |
| A．facing with | B．facing up to | C．looking up to | D．looking forward to |
| A．positive | B．negative | C．pessimistic | D．passive |
| A．kept | B．developed | C．formed | D．broken |
| A．drinks | B．clothes | C．food | D．water |
| A．because | B．but | C．and | D．so |
| A．normally | B．effectively | C．slightly | D．seriously |
| A．that | B．which | C．what | D．who |
| A．Above all | B．In conclusion | C．To begin with | D．What’s more |
| A．anything | B．nothing | C．everything | D．something |
9 . Emotional pain is part of life.
Seek help from those close to you. Asking for help can be awkward. However, if you let someone know that you are trying to make specific changes in your life, it will increase the likelihood of your success.
Volunteer your time to a cause. One way of coping with emotional pain is to volunteer your time, resources, or expertise to a worthy cause or individual. Volunteering will help you develop new skills, and begin or strengthen your connection with your community. It can also provide a boost to your self-esteem and personal development.
Make a plan to build coping skills. Following a problem-solving model will give you a structure for creating change. You must determine clear objectives, carry them out, make adjustments as needed and monitor your progress.
| A．Focus on the positive. |
| B．You will feel a “giver’s high”. |
| C．Fill your schedule with new agenda items. |
| D．Knowing that doesn’t seem to make it any easier. |
| E．Emotional pain, however, can take much longer to wear off. |
| F．Your new behaviors will build over time and become second nature to you. |
| G．A strong support network can help you cope with your pain more effectively. |
10 . Perhaps you’ve stopped doing what you want because you’re afraid of what others think of you. You feel that you must do what they expect and that you must meet their expectations, otherwise you’ll lose their approval.
Think about yourself, about what you really like and are interested in. You must lead your life independently.
By surrounding yourself with people who think like you, you’ll realize that you don’t feel judged. Then, you’ll start doing what you really want.
To overcome your fear of what others think and of their non-approval, you should start talking about your plans, For instance, you might want to tell a handful of friends about your wishes and dreams.
It’s unavoidable that not everything will be plain sailing, and you’ll find obstacles along your way.
| A．There is no need to think about what you want. |
| B．You don’t have to change your circle of friends. |
| C．Your life belongs to you, as well as your actions. |
| D．By talking to them, you’ll be able to organize your plans and ideas. |
| E．If this is the case, it’s time to start working on your self-esteem (自尊). |
| F．You must do what you want without being affected by what others think. |
| G．However, you must trust in yourself and seek the necessary strength to move forward. |
