专升本、四级英语考试解析（四十八）
发布时间：2021-09-30浏览：次
编辑：hongsheng
仔细阅读
第一篇
As anyone who has tried to lose weight knows, realistic goal-setting generally produces the best results. That’s partially because it appears people who set realistic goals ACTually work more efficiently, and exert more effort, to achieve those goals.
(52) What’s far less understood by scientists, however, are the potentially harmful effects of goal-setting.
Newspapers relay daily accounts of goal-setting run amok in industries and businesses up and down both Wall Street and Main Street, yet there has been surprisingly little research on how the long-trumpeted prACTice of setting goals may have contributed to the current economic crisis, and unethical behavior in general.
“It turns out there’s no economic benefit to just having a goal—you just get a psychological benefit Schweitzer says. (53) “But in many cases, goals have economic rewards that make them more salient or powerful.”
A prime example Schweitzer and his colleagues cite is the 2004 collapse of energy-trading titan Enron, where managers used financial incentives to motivate salesmen to meet specific revenue goals. The problem, Schweitzer says, is the ACTual trades were not profitable.
Other studies have shown that saddling employees with unrealistic goals can compel them to lie, cheat or steal. (54) Such was the case, Schweitzer says, in the early 1990s when Sears imposed a sales quota on its auto repair staff. It prompted employees to overcharge for work and to complete unnecessary repairs on a companywide basis.
Schweitzer concedes his research runs counter to a very large body of literature that extols the many benefits of goal-setting.(55) Advocates of the prACTice have taken issue with his team’s use of such evidence as news accounts to support his conclusion that goal setting is widely over-prescribed.
In a rebuttal paper, Edwin A. Locke writes: “Goal setting is not going away. Organizations cannot thrive without being focused on their desired end results any more than an inpidual can thrive without goals to provide a sense of purpose.”
(56) But Schweitzer contends the “mounting causal evidence” linking goal-setting and harmful behavior should be studied to help spotlight issues that merit caution and further investigation. “Even a few negative effects could be so large that they outweigh many positive effects,” he says.
“Goal-setting does help coordinate and motivate people. My idea would be to combine that with careful oversight, a strong organizational culture, and make sure the goals that you use are going to be constructive and not significantly harm the organization,” Schweitzer says.
52. What message does the author try to convey about goal-setting?
A. Its negative effects have long been neglected.
B. The goals increase people’s work efficiency.
C. Its role has been largely underestimated.
D. The goals most people set are unrealistic
答案：A
解析：由顺序原则定位至文章开篇，第二段的however意味着重点在第二段，该句在第一段列举设定目标的好处之后，提出设定目标的潜在负面后果一直未被了解，可知文章作者的中心在揭露设定目标的危害方面。
53. What does Maurice Schweitzer want to show by citing the example of Enron?
A. Setting realistic goals can turn a failing business into success.
B. Businesses are less likely to succeed without setting realistic goals.
C. Financial incentives ensure companies meet specific revenue goals.
D. Goals with financial rewards have strong motivational power.
答案：D
解析：由Maurice Schweitzer和Enron定位至六段首，该题问的是引用这个例子的目的，于是定位至引出该例子的五段末句（同时也是转折后的重点信息）。D选项即是五段末句的改写，financial改写原文的economical。
54. How did Sears’ goal-setting affect its employees?
A. They were obliged to work more hours to increase their sales.
B. They competed with one another to attrACT more customers.
C. They resorted to unethical prACTice to meet their sales quota.
D. They improved their customer service on a company wide basis.
答案：C
解析：由Seal定位至七段第二句。该题问的是Seal的行为对员工的影响。本句只介绍了行为，具体影响出现在下句，提到员工出现漫天要价(overcharge)、做无用功等不良行为，C选项即是对这种现象的总结。C选项的unethical也对应本段首句的lie, cheat or steal。
55. What do advocates of goal-setting think of Schweitzer’s research?
A. Its findings are not of much prACTical value.
B. It exaggerates the side effects of goal-setting.
C. Its conclusion is not based on solid scientific evidence.
D. It runs counter to the existing literature on the subject.
答案：C
解析：由advocates定位至八段第二句。该句提出设定目标的支持者对Schweitzer为支持自己的结论(conclusion)所使用的证据(evidence)提出了质疑(take issue with)，C选项同时包含了这三个重点。
56. What is Schweitzer contention against Edwin Locke?
A. The link between goal-setting and harmful behavior deserves further study.
B. Goal-setting has become too deep-rooted in corporate culture.
C. The positive effects of goal-setting outweigh its negative effects.
D. Studying goal-setting can throw more light on successful business prACTices.
答案：A
解析：由Schweitzer和Edwin Locke定位至文章九、十两段，题干问的是前者对后者的反驳，因此定位至第十段Schweitzer说的话中（同时也是But后的重点信息）。该句提到设定目标与有害行为之间关联性证据的增加应当被研究，A选项改写于此。deserve改写原文的should。
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