四级真题2020年9月第一套 Passage One
四级真题2020年9月第一套 Passage One


①Americans spend billions of dollars each year trying to change our weight with diets, gym memberships and plastic surgery.

②Trying to live up to the images of “perfect” models and movie heroes has a dark side: anxiety and depression, as well as unhealthy strategies for weight loss or muscle gain. It also has a financial cost. Having an eating disorder boosts annual health care costs by nearly US$2,000 per person.
③Why is there both external and internal pressure to look “perfect”? One reason is that society rewards people who are thin and healthy looking. Researchers have shown that body mass index is related to wages and income. Especially for women, there is a clear penalty at work for being overweight or obese. Some studies have also found an impact for men, though a less noticeable one.
④While the research literature is clear that labor market success is partly based on how employers and customers perceive your body image, no one had explored the other side of question. Does a person's own perception of body image matter to earnings and other indicators of success in the workplace?
⑤Our recently published study answered this question by tracking a large national random sample of Americans over a critical time period when bodies change from teenage shape into adult form and when people build their identities.
⑥As in other research, women in our sample tend to over-perceive their weight—they think they're heavier than they are—while men tend to under-perceive theirs.
⑦We found no relationship between the average person's self- perception of weight and labor market outcomes, although self-perceived weight can influence self-esteem（自尊心）, mental health and health behaviors.
⑧While the continued gender penalty in the labor market is frustrating, our finding that misperceived weight does not harm workers is more heartening. 
⑨Since employers’ perception of weight is what matters in the labor market, changing discrimination laws to include body type as a category would also help. Michigan is the only state that prohibits discrimination on the basis of weight and height. We believe expanding such protections would make the labor market more fair and efficient.

1.1. What does the author say may have an adverse impact on people?

A Undergoing plastic surgeries in pursuit of beauty.

B Imitating the lifestyles of heroes and role models.

C Striving to achieve perfection regardless of financial cost.

D Attempting to meet society’s expectation of appearance.

解析：选D。D推理判断题。由题干中的 adverse impact 定位到第二段第一句。定位句指出，试图达到“完美”模特和电影英雄的形象有不良影响,这会导致一系列问题。由此可见，试图满足社会对外表的期望会产生负面影响,故答案为 D。

2.2. What have researchers found out about people’s earnings?

A They are closely related to people’s social status.

B They have to do with people’s body weight and shape.

C They seem to matter much less to men than to women.

D They may not be equal to people’s contributions.

解析：选B。B细节理解题。由题干中的 people's earnings 定位到第三段第三句。定位句提到,研究人员发现，体重指数与工资和收入有关，由此可知人们的收人和体重、体型有关,故答案为 B。

3.3. What does the author’s recent study focus on?

A Previous literature on indicators of competitiveness in the workplace.

B Traits that matter most in one’s pursuit of success in the labor market.

C Whether self-perception of body image impacts one’s workplace success.

D How bosses’ perception of body image impacts employees’ advancement.

解析：选C。C推理判断题。由题干中的 recent study 和 focus on 定位到第五段。定位段指出，作者的团队近期公布的研究回答了这个问题,因此可从上一段找出这个问题是什么。第四段最后一句就是作者的研究重点,即一个人对自己身体形象的看法是否会影响他的收入和其他职场中成功的指标,故答案为 C。

4.4. What is the finding of the author’s recent research?

A Being overweight actually does not do much harm to the overall well-being of employees.

B People are not adversely affected in the workplace by false self-perception of body weight.

C Self-esteem helps to combat gender inequality in the workplace.

D Gender inequality continues to frustrate a lot of female employees.

解析：选B。B细节理解题。由题干中的 finding、recent research 以及题文同序原则定位到第八段。定位段提到，尽管职场上仍然存在性别歧视,但作者的研究发现,对体重的错误认知并不会对劳动者造成伤害,故答案为 B。

5.5. What does the author think would help improve the condition in the labor market?

A Banning discrimination on the basis of employees’ body image.

B Expanding protection of women against gender discrimination.

C Helping employees change their own perception of beauty.

D Excluding body shape as a category in the labor contract.

解析：选A。A细节理解题。由题干中的 help improve the situation 定位到最后一段第一句。定位句指出,由于雇主对体重的看法是影响劳动力市场的重要因素,因此修改反歧视法规,将体型加人其中作为一个类别,将会有所帮助。由此可见，禁止对员工身体形象的歧视将有助于改善现状,故答案为 A。