Orientation Reading for gist Read texts quickly to get a general idea of what they are about, 10 UNITI Reading 1 Discuss these questions with other students. What information does the bar chart on page 11 contain? b_ Make true statements about these countries Nigeria Romania USA/Mexico 2 Discuss these questions. Australia/Russia a What factors could explain why the populations of some countries are happier than the populations of others? b IF your country is listed in the bar chart, do you think itis a true reflection of the people of your country? Ifit is not shown, where would you place it on the chart? 3 Read the text The pursuit of happiness and say which of these general topics it covers. + the growth in the academic study of happiness + reasons for being unhappy + the distinction between happiness and overall ‘satisfaction’ with life + links between wealth, consumerism and happiness + how people's happiness affects the jobs they do + cultural attitudes towards happiness 4 Which parts of the text deal with the four topics you have identified? The pursuit of ‘ow are we supposed to find happiness? Through good works and helping people? By finding religion or discovering the joys of 5 downshifting? Whatever strategy you choose, where you live might make a difference. The latest global analysis of happiness and satisfaction levels shows that the most ‘sarisfied” people rend ra. live in to Latin America, Western Europe and North ‘America, whereas Eastern Europeans are the Teast satisfied. It is not the First cime such international Teague tables have been drawn up. What is 15 new is how experts and politicians are eaking such data increasingly seriously. Over the past decade, the study of happiness, formecly the preserve of philosophers, therapists and gucus, has become a bona fide diseipline. Ie Happiness Studies. AS a result, government policy advisers are getting interested, and politicians are using the research as the basis for new strategies. What above all else has made systematic study possible is data gathered from hundreds of surveys measuring happiness across different cultures, professions, religions, and socio-economic groups. Researchers can investigate the impact of ‘money and inequality; chcy could explore, for example, how much difference money makes to a person’s happiness after their basic ‘material needs have been met, and whether inequality in wealth and status is as important a source of dissatisfaction as we might think. ‘Icis an exciting area, says Ruut Veenhoven, editor-in-chief of the Journal of Happiness Studies “We can now show which 2» even has its own journal, the Journal of 40 behaviours are tisky as far as happiness goes,in the same way medical research shows what is bad for our health. We should eventually be able to show what kind of lifestyle suits what kind of person.’ While it is eempring to hold up those nations thar report che highest levels of happiness as a model for others to follow, this ‘may be unwise. For one thing, the word ‘happiness’ has no precise equivalent in some languages. Another complication is that ‘satisfaction’ is not quite the same thing as ‘happiness. When asked how happy they are, people tend to consider first their current state. To get a better idea, researchers ask people to take a step back and consider how satisfied they are with their lives overall and how meaningful they judge their lives tobe. Comparisons between countries also need to be treated cautiously. Differenc cultures value happiness in very different ‘ways, In individualistic western countries, happiness is often seen as a reflection of personal achievement. Being unhappy implies thae you have noc made the most of your life. Eunkook Mark Suh at Yonsei University in Seoul thinks this pressure to be happy could lead people to oversteport how happy they fee. ‘Meanwhile, in the more collectivist nations of Asia, people have a more fatalisticattitude towards happiness. According to Suh, “One of the consequences of such an atticude is char you don’t have to feel inferior or guilty about not being very happy’ 65 Indeed, in Asian cultures the pursuit of happiness is often frowned on, which in turn could lead people to underreport 3 pele ese e ‘very happy people (percent) Nigeria Aetrlia Japan Zimoabine K be able to show style suits what kind of person.’ How satisfied a person is with their life also depends on how successfully they adhere to their particular cultural standard, In Japan, for instance, satisfaction may come from fulfilling 7» family expectations and meeting social responsibilities. So, while in the US ic is perfectly appropriate to pursue your own happiness, in Japan you are more likely to find happiness by not pursuing i directy. One of the most significant observations to come from rescarch findings is that in industrialised nations, happiness has not risen with average incomes. A growing number of researchers are putting this down to consumerism, claiming that the desire for material goods, which has increased wich average income, is a ‘happiness suppressant’. One study, by ‘Tim Kasser at Knox College, Ilinois, found that young adults who focus on money, image and fame tend to be more depressed and suffer more physical sympcoms such as headaches. Kasser believes that since nothing about materialism can help you find happiness, governments should discourage it and instead promote things that can, For instance, they could support businesses that allow thei ‘employees plenty of time off ro be with their families, whereas advertising could be classified as a form of pollution and could be taxed. ‘Advertisements have become more sophisticated,’ says Kasser. “They try to tie their message to people's psychological needs. But it isa false link. [tis toxic: ‘These days even hard-headed economists tend to agree that the key co making people happier is to shift the emphasis from economic well-being to personal development, and to discourage the pursuit of social starus. This last point is crucial, believes Richard Layard from the London School of Beonomies, since the pursuit of social status does not make society as a whole any happier. Motivating people through the quest for rank ‘condemns as many to fail as to succeed - noca ‘good formula for raising human happiness, says Layard. In view of these findings, it seems that governments would do well co worry about the happiness of their eleccorate. There ‘ould be dangers, however. Paradoxically, by striving too hard to climb the global happiness rankings, governments are in anger of turning the pursuit of happiness into yet another competitive quest for status ~ just what researchers have shown isa sure path to making people miserable. uNIT1 11Unfamiliar vocabulary IELTS practice Don’t get stuck on, vocabulary you don't know. It may not be important. 12 UNITL 5 Read the first three paragraphs of the text again and underline any words that are unfamiliar to you. Compare ideas with another student. Can you understand the general meaning of these paragraphs, despite not understanding the words you have underlined? ‘Questions 1-3: Short-answer questions ‘Answer these questions with words from the text, using no more than THREE words for each answer. 1 ‘According to the text, what could influence your level of contentment? 2 Which group of people is interested in the practical implications of the research into happiness? 3. Which two factors are researchers able to study in their attempt to find reasons why some people are dissatisfied? ‘Questions 4-6: Sentence completion Complete these sentences with words from the text, using no more than THREE words for each answer. 4 Happiness represents in the minds of people from ‘One of the implications of the Asian attitude is that being unhappy does not make individuals fee An individual’ level of satisfaction is partly determined by how closely they conform to their own Questions 7-10: Summary completion ‘Complete the summary below. Choose no more than TWO words from the text for ‘each answer. Researchers have found that in developed countries happiness has not increased in line with (7)... In their opinion, the fact that people have more money feeds their obsession with buying things and this acts as a (8) ..« Their theory is illustrated by the fact that there isa higher than average incidence of mental problems among, (9) ose cone WhO have materialistic concerns. There is also ‘general agreement that people would be happier if they concentrated on (10) ssssnnsnseinssnnnanenne Father than their financial or social status.Exploration 6 Work with other students. Rank the following factors according to how much you think they contribute to people's happiness family life wealth social network accommodation job satisfaction health ‘Are there any other factors you would add to this list? 7 What are the opposites of these adjectives? In some cases, you can add a prefix or a suffix; in other cases you may need to think of a completely different word. catiefied (1) callactvier (161) risky (1.40) inferior (1.64) unwise (1.46) significant (1.74) precise (|.47) competitive (1.106) meaningful (1.53) miserable (107) 8 Refer to the text to find answers to these questions. a What do you understand by the verbs ‘over-report’ (1,60), and ‘under-report’(I,66)? What other verbs do you know with these prefixes? b What do you understand by the word ‘consumerism’ (1.77)? What other words do you know that end with -ism? What general meanings does this suffix have? € Use a dictionary to check the difference in meaning between these compound adjectives: ‘hard-headed' ([.92), ‘hard-hearted’, ‘hard-pressed’, ‘hard-nosed’. 9 Match the words om te left with those on the right to form commonly occurring vverb-noun combinations. Then check your answers by finding them in the text. Example: to meet someone's needs to draw up data to fulfil expectations to gather league tables to meet someone's needs to suffer symptoms 10 Use the verb-noun combinations above to complete these sentences. You will need to ‘change the form of the verbs. a In their investigations, social scientists... from many different sources. b_ Even businesses which make substantial profits can fail tO wn. the sn. oF the financial markets. Increasing numbers of people in the developed world are nu the sue OF hay fever and other allergies. d_ Education authorities in Britain ...... annual ...... showing which are the best and worst schools in their area. Research is currently being undertaken to look at how universities could ..... the learning ...... oF individual students. UNITI 13