阅读试题

A German study suggests that people who were too optimistic about their future actually faced greater riskof disability or death within 10 years than those pessimists who expected their future to be worse.

The paper, published this March in Psychology and Aging, examined health and welfare surveys from roughly 40,000 Germans between ages 18 and 96. The surveys were conducted every year from 1993 to 2003.

Survey respondents (受访者) were asked to estimate their present and future life satisfaction on a scale of 0 to 10, among other questions.

The researchers found that young adults (age 18 to 39) routinely overestimated their future life satisfaction, while middle-aged adults (age 40 to 64) more accurately predicted how they would feel in the future. Adults of 65 and older, however, were far more likely to underestimate their future life satisfaction. Notonly did they feel more satisfied than they thought they would, the older pessimists seemed to suffer a lower ratio (比率) of disability and death for the study period.

"We observed that being too optimistic in predicting a better future than actually observed was associatedwith a greater risk of disability and a greater risk of death within the following decade," wrote Frieder R. Lang, a professor at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg.

Lang and his colleagues believed that people who were pessimistic about their future may be more careful about their actions than people who expected a rosy future.

"Seeing a dark future may encourage positive evaluations of the actual self and may contribute to taking improved precautions (预防措施)," the authors wrote.

Surprisingly, compared with those in poor health or who had low incomes, respondents who enjoyed good health or income were associated with expecting a greater decline. Also, the researchers said that higher income was related to a greater risk of disability.

The authors of the study noted that there were limitations to their conclusions. Illness, medical treatment and personal loss could also have driven health outcomes.

However, the researchers said a pattern was clear. "We found that from early to late adulthood, individuals adapt their expectations of future life satisfaction from optimistic, to accurate, to pessimistic," the authors concluded.

阅读试题

67. According to the study, who made the most accurate prediction of their future life satisfaction?

A. Optimistic adults.
B. Middle-aged adults.
C. Adults in poor health.

D. Adults of lower income.

68. Pessimism may be positive in some way because it causes people ______.

A. to fully enjoy their present life
B. to estimate their contribution accurately
C. to take measures against potential risks

D. to value health more highly than wealth

69. How do people of higher income see their future?

A. They will earn less money.
B. They will become pessimistic.
C. They will suffer mental illness.
D. They will have less time to enjoy life.

70. What is the clear conclusion of the study?

A. Pessimism guarantees chances of survival.
B. Good financial condition leads to good health.
C. Medical treatment determines health outcomes.
D. Expectations of future life satisfaction decline with age.

参考译文

德国的一项研究表明，与那些预计他们未来会更糟的悲观主义者相比，实际上，对他们的未来过于乐观的人在10年内将面临更大的残疾或死亡风险。

今年3月份在《心理学和老龄化》上发表的健康和福利调查报告，这一报告对18 - 96岁之间大约40000名德国人的健康和福利进行了调查研究。这一调查从1993年到2003年每年都进行。

受访者被要求在0到10的范围内评价他们对现在和未来生活的满意度并回答其他问题。

研究人员发现，年轻的成年人(18岁到39岁)普遍高估了他们对未来生活的满意度，而中年人(40岁到64)更准确地预测到他们在未来会有何感觉。然而，65岁及以上的成年人可能更加低估了他们对未来的生活满意度。他们不仅会比他们想的还要满意，而且在研究期间，年长的悲观主义者似乎遭受残疾和死亡的比率也更低。

埃尔兰根纽伦堡大学教授弗莱德 ·R·朗写到：“我们注意到，未来十年，与实际观察相比，对美好未来过于乐观的预测与更大的残疾和死亡风险密切相关。

朗和他的同事们认为，在行动上，对未来比较悲观的人可能要比那些期待美好未来的人更加小心谨慎。

作者写道：“预测将有一个灰暗的未来可能会鼓励人们对真实自我做出积极的评价，也有利于采取改进措施。”

令人惊讶的是，与那些收入较低、健康状况不佳的人相比，收入较高且身体健康的受访者却总是有着预期上较大程度的下滑。此外，研究人员还说，高收入与更大的残疾风险相关。

该研究的作者指出，他们的结论有其局限性。疾病、医疗和个人损失也可以影响健康状况。

然而，研究人员说这存在一种清晰的模式。作者总结道：“我们发现，从成年期的早期到晚期，个人适应他们未来生活的满意度也经历了一个从对预期的乐观到准确再到悲观的过程。”

答案解析

67. B 考查细节理解。根据第四段内容可知，18-39岁的年轻人会高估自己未来生活的满意度，65岁及以上年龄的人往往会低估自己未来生活的满意度，而40-64岁的中年人则对自己未来生活的满意度估计更准确一些。

68. C 考查推理判断。根据第六段和第七段内容可知，对自己未来悲观的人比乐天派对自己的日常行为更加小心，这样的人可能会及时采取措施应对潜在的危险，因此选C。

69. A 考查推理判断。根据第八段中的第一句话可知，与身体不好或收入不高的人相比，身体好或者收入高的受访者往往预料自己身体垮得更厉害或收入明显减少。因此选A。

70. D 考查推理判断。文章开头提到不同年龄段的人对自己未来生活满意度的估计不同；从文章接下来的内容可知，年轻人更乐观，中年人较实际，老年人更悲观，看来对未来生活满意度估计的程度是随着年龄而递减的，因此选D。