Reading Comprehension Flashcards
“Norms serve the function of standardizing behavior, of bringing order to what otherwise would be a chaotic situation. If some of us drove on the left side of the road and others on the right side, or if some of us stopped for red lights while others did not, there would be much confusion and danger. In other words, social life as we know it would not be possible without norms. All cultures have a system of norms to provide such social control for a society.”
The author’s primary purpose in this passage is to
A: explain the function of norms for social control.
B: refute the belief that norms are unimportant.
C: instruct readers about which norms are appropriate in some cultures.
D: establish social norms that are especially popular in the United States.
E: warn drivers who are reckless to be more careful.
A: explain the function of norms for social control.
“Religious groups, such as Catholics or lesser Protestant sects, have at one time or another, borne the yoke of discrimination. Around the world and in the United States, persecution of religious minorities has considerably decreased in the twentieth century - the exceptions being the conflict between Protestant and Catholic factions in Northern Ireland and between Hindu and Moslem groups in
India.”
We may infer which of the following conclusions from this passage?
A: Only Catholics and Protestants have borne the yoke of discrimination.
B: Religious persecution was more widespread in the sixteenth century than it is today.
C: Northern Ireland and India are very similar regions.
D: Religious persecution in the United States is more of a problem than elsewhere in the world.
E: Hindus hold beliefs similar to those of Protestants, and Moslems hold beliefs similar to those of Catholics.
B: Religious persecution was more widespread in the sixteenth century than it is today.
“Religious groups, such as Catholics or lesser Protestant sects, have at one time or another, borne the yoke of discrimination. Around the world and in the United States, persecution of religious minorities has considerably decreased in the twentieth century - the exceptions being the conflict between Protestant and Catholic factions in Northern Ireland and between Hindu and Moslem groups in
India.”
Which of the following best expresses the point of the passage?
A: Although religious persecution is less widespread now than it had been, it is no less repulsive.
B: Catholics and Protestants have not been persecuted for some time.
C: Only those groups which have been persecuted can call themselves religious.
D: Becoming a member of any religious group entails the risk of persecution.
E: Although religious discrimination has affected a number of religious groups, it is not so widespread now as it has been.
E: Although religious discrimination has affected a number of religious groups, it is not so widespread now as it has been.
“A number of special psychotherapeutic techniques have been developed. In psychodrama people are placed in a staged situation involving one of their real-life conflicts and work out their problems there. In group therapy a number of persons and a therapist meet to interact about the problems of all the participants. Sharing their feelings and problems helps each of them. Play therapy,usually done with children, utilizes dolls, playhouses, etc., to permit children to release, on these inanimate objects, the reactions they are otherwise forbidden to use.”
The author would probably agree that psychodrama, group therapy, and play therapy all encourage which of the following?
A: Strange behavior B: Contact with the unconscious C: Theatrical techniques D: Introversion E: Self-expression
E: Self-expression
“A number of special psychotherapeutic techniques have been developed. In psychodrama people are placed in a staged situation involving one of their real-life conflicts and work out their problems there. In group therapy a number of persons and a therapist meet to interact about the problems of all the participants. Sharing their feelings and problems helps each of them. Play therapy, usually done with children, utilizes dolls, playhouses, etc., to permit children to release, on these inanimate objects, the reactions they are otherwise forbidden to use.”
In the last sentence, the author assumes which of the following?
A: Some children hide their true reactions.
B: Dolls are most useful to the therapist when they are set in a playhouse.
C: Children love to do violence to inanimate objects.
D: Play therapy is the only type of therapy that is appropriate for children.
E: Most children do not have dolls and playhouses in their own homes.
A: Some children hide their true reactions.
“Brainwashing refers to techniques employed during the Korean War to extract war crimes confessions from American soldiers. The goal of these techniques was to re-educate the prisoners to think in ways acceptable to their captors. This involved ‘unfreezing’ old beliefs by an intensive propaganda campaign, under conditions of social isolation; changing beliefs by forcing prisoners to develop ‘confessions’ acceptable to themselves and their captors; and reinforcing (‘re-freezing’) new beliefs by requiring active participation in the brainwashing of others.”
According to the paragraph, each of the following is true about brainwashing except that
A: it was employed during the Korean War.
B: it was practiced on all those captured during the Korean War.
C: it attempted to destroy old beliefs.
D: it forced prisoners to confess to war crimes.
E: the victims of brainwashing were socially isolated.
B: it was practiced on all those captured during the Korean War.
“In successive IQ tests on the same person, the score may vary. The test has some inherent variability as a measuring instrument. From one test to another, even if given under very similar conditions, variations in the person would produce score variations on identical twins.”
The paragraph supports which of the following conclusions?
A: There are other tests that are more reliable than IQ tests.
B: Many educators no longer consider IQ test scores to be important.
C: People usually take the same IQ test a number of times.
D: A person who takes the same IQ test three times may get three different scores.
E: IQ test scores are infallible indicators of intelligence.
D: A person who takes the same IQ test three times may get three different scores.
“There are three major sources of frustration. The physical environment provides many instances in which persons are blocked from goals - for example,fences around swimming pools and washed out bridges across roads. The social environment is frustrating - for example, being blackballed from a fraternity or turned down by a highly desirable dating partner. Personal limitations are also frustrating, as is witnessed by the fact that most adolescents desire but cannot achieve some radical change in their bodily attributes to meet a social norm.”
The author of the paragraph above would probably agree that
A: dating partners are not often highly desirable.
B: situations that occur in everyday life can cause frustration.
C: the frustration of personal limitations is the worst frustration.
D: frustration is a problem that can be eliminated.
E: adolescents are usually less frustrated than adults.
B: situations that occur in everyday life can cause frustration.
“There are three major sources of frustration. The physical environment provides many instances in which persons are blocked from goals - for example, fences around swimming pools and washed out bridges across roads. The social environment is frustrating - for example, being blackballed from a fraternity or turned down by a highly desirable dating partner. Personal limitations are also frustrating, as is witnessed by the fact that most adolescents desire but cannot achieve some radical change in their bodily attributes to meet a social norm.”
Which of the following is the one implication of the last sentence of the paragraph?
A: Personal limitations are no longer frustrating once one has passed adolescence.
B: A number of social norms are simply not fair.
C: Some adolescents desire a more socially acceptable appearance.
D: Personal limitations are not related to the social environment.
E: Adolescence is the most frustrating period of one’s life.
C: Some adolescents desire a more socially acceptable appearance
“There are about 14,500 commercial banks in the United States that accept checking deposits. About one-third of these are national banks that received their corporate charters from the federal government and must belong to the Federal Reserve System (hereafter called the Fed). The remaining two-thirds are state banks that need not, but may, belong to the Fed. About 60 percent of the banks do not belong to the Fed, but their deposits represent only about one-seventh of the total of all bank deposits.”
The paragraph above supports which of the following conclusions?
A: National banks are not required to belong to the Fed.
B: The banks that do not belong to the Fed are located outside the United States.
C: More than 14,500 commercial banks are state banks.
D: National banks have no relationship to the federal government.
E: Banks that belong to the Federal Reserve System account for 6/7 of the total of all bank deposits.
E: Banks that belong to the Federal Reserve System account for 6/7 of the total of all bank deposits.
“‘Vote! Vote! Regardless of how you vote, get out and vote!’ All mature Americans are accustomed to being besieged by such pleas. And convincing statistics are advanced which indicate that a smaller proportion of Americans vote than citizens of most European countries. And yet, voting remains a considerable chore in most states.”
According to the above paragraph, the response of most Americans to the message “get out and vote” is
A: loud complaining about the real difficulty of getting to the polls.
B: looked upon with the suspicion that their votes are being “bought.”
C: attention to statistics, which keeps them away from the polls.
D: not as strong as the response of many Europeans.
E: not as strong as it used to be.
D: not as strong as the response of many Europeans.
“‘Vote! Vote! Regardless of how you vote, get out and vote!’ All mature Americans are accustomed to being besieged by such pleas. And convincing statistics are advanced which indicate that a smaller proportion of Americans vote than citizens of most European countries. And yet, voting remains a
considerable chore in most states.”
Which of the following best summarizes the paragraph?
A: Americans have become too accustomed to hearing pleas that they vote
B: As voting participation grows, democracy in America will rival that in Europe.
C: Although Americans are urged to vote, a large proportion of them do not.
D: It is much easier to get out and vote in European countries.
E: Voters in Europe rarely need encouragement.
C: Although Americans are urged to vote, a large proportion of them do not.
“Working behind closed doors during the hot summer of 1787, a group of distinguished representatives from twelve of the American states debated, contended, espoused and compromised until they had produced a proposed new Constitution of the United States of America. When the doors were thrown open and the results of their handiwork revealed to the world, a mixed response followed.”
Which of the following best describes the content of this paragraph?
A: Hints of why the new Constitution was not immediately welcomed by all.
B: Account of the problems that challenged the writers of the Constitution.
C: Explanation of the reason that the writers of the Constitution met behind closed doors.
D: List of reasons that the Constitution received a mixed response.
E: Brief summary of the writing of the U.S. Constitution.
E: Brief summary of the writing of the U.S. Constitution.
“There is an expression, ‘Let the facts speak for themselves.’ But facts do not speak; people do. Facts are meaningless without interpretation. When people ask the question ‘Why?’ or ‘What does it mean?’ they want an interpretation or evaluation. Thus, it seems inevitable that people will require
philosophies.”
The author of this paragraph implies which of the following?
A: Most people are full of questions.
B: Facts are not meaningful if they are independent of people.
C: Some facts do speak for themselves.
D: Some expressions are more correct than others.
E: Philosophies are more numerous than facts.
B: Facts are not meaningful if they are independent of people.
