How stress affects our judgement Reading Answers and explanation

How stress affects our judgement: Reading Answers & explanation 

In this post, you'll find the complete solution and explanation for the Reading passage How stress affects our judgement from the IELTS Book Cambridge 20. Each answer is explained in the easiest possible way, along with the answer location from the passage. This is perfect for students who want to understand not just the correct answers, but why they are correct — helping you improve your IELTS Reading skills with every practice test.

Questions    27-30   Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs )

27. In the first paragraph, the writer introduces the topic of the text by Answer: C

Keywords: challenged faced, everyone

Answer location: 1st Paragraph, Lines (Some of the most important decisions of our lives occur while we're feeling stressed and anxious. From medical decisions to financial and professional ones, we are all sometimes required to weigh up information under stressful conditions.)

28 What point does the writer make about firefighters in the second paragraph? Answer: A

Keywords: firefighters,2nd paragraph,ups and down= changes,perfect for experiment=ideal for study

Answer Location: 2nd Paragraph, Lines (These ups and downs presented the perfect setting for an experiment on how people's ability to use information changes when they feel under pressure.

29 What is the writer doing in the fourth paragraph? Answer: D

Keywords: 4th paragraph, results, estimate

Answer location: 4th Paragraph, Lines (This is how we arrived at these results. We asked the firefighters to estimate their likelihood of experiencing 40 different adverse events in their life, such as being involved in an accident or becoming a victim of card fraud. We then gave them either good news (that their likelihood of experiencing these events was lower than they'd thought) or bad news (that it was higher) and asked them to provide new estimates.)

30 In the seventh paragraph, the writer describes a mechanism in the brain which.

 Answer: C

Keywords: mechanism, brain,7th paragraph

Answer location: 7th Paragraph, Lines ( When we experience stressful events, a physiological change is triggered that causes us to take in warnings and focus on what might go wrong. Brain imaging reveals that this 'switch' is related to a sudden boost in a neural signal important for learning, specifically in response to unexpected warning signs, such as faces expressing fear.)

Questions 31-35: Complete each sentence with the correct ending, A-G, below.

31 At times when they were relaxed, the firefighters usually. Answer: B

Keywords: firefighter, relaxed, ignore bad news

Answer location: 5th Paragraph, Lines ( People are normally quite optimistic - they will ignore bad news and embrace the good. This is what happened when the firefighters were relaxed, but when they were under stress, a different pattern emerged. Under these conditions, they became hyper-vigilant to bad news,)

32 The researchers noted that when the firefighters were stressed, they.....Answer: G

Keywords: firefighter stressed=under stress, hyper vigilant to bad news

Answer location: 5th Paragraph, Lines ( People are normally quite optimistic - they will ignore bad news and embrace the good. This is what happened when the firefighters were relaxed, but when they were under stress, a different pattern emerged. Under these conditions, they became hyper-vigilant to bad news,)

33 When the firefighters were told good news, they always ....Answer: F

Keywords: good news, similar manner = didn't change

Answer location: 5th paragraph, Lines ( In contrast, stress didn't change how they responded to good news (such as learning that the likelihood of card fraud was lower than they'd thought.)

34 The students’ cortisol levels and heart rates were affected when the researchers. 

Answer: E

Keywords: cortisol level, heart rate, stressful situation,

Answer location: 6th Paragraph, lines (Back in our lab, we observed the same pattern in students who were told they had to give a surprise public speech, which would be judged by a panel, recorded, and posted online. Sure enough, their cortisol levels spiked, their heart rates went up, and they suddenly became better at processing unrelated, yet alarming, information about rates of disease and violence.)

35 In both experiments, negative information was processed better when the subjects. Answer: D

Keywords: negative information,

Answer location: 7th Paragraph, lines (When we experience stressful events, a physiological change is triggered that causes us to take in warnings and focus on what might go wrong. Brain imaging reveals that this 'switch' is related to a sudden boost in a neural signal important for learning, specifically in response to unexpected warning signs, such as faces expressing fear.)

Questions 36-40    Yes/ No /Not given

36 The tone of the content we post on social media tends to reflect the nature of the posts in our feeds. Answer: Yes

Keywords: the tone, social media

Answer location: 9th Paragraph, Lines ( Studies show that if we observe positive feeds on social media, such as images of a pink sunset, we are more likely to post uplifting messages ourselves. If we observe negative posts, such as complaints about a long queue at the coffee shop, we will in turn create more negative posts.)

37 Phones have a greater impact on our stress levels than other electronic media devices. Answer: Not given

Keywords: phone, stress level, greater impact

answer Location: 10th Paragraph Lines ( phone word used in paragraph, but doesn't mention it has the greatest impact)

38 The more we read about a stressful public event on social media, the less able we are to take the information in. Answer: No

Keywords: stressful event, social media, alarming information, exaggeration 

Answer Location: 11th Paragraph, lines ( After a stressful public event, such as a natural disaster or major financial crash, there is often a wave of alarming information in traditional and social media, which individuals become very aware of. But that has the effect of exaggerating existing danger.)

39 Stress created by social media posts can lead us to take unnecessary precautions. 

Answer: Yes

Keywords: unnecessary precautions,

Answer location: 11th paragraph, Lines ( And so, a reliable pattern emerges - stress is triggered, spreading from one person to the next, which temporarily enhances the likelihood that people will take in negative reports, which increases stress further. As a result, trips are cancelled, even if the disaster took place across the globe; stocks are sold, even when holding on is the best thing to do.)

40 Our tendency to be affected by other people’s moods can be used in a positive way. Answer: Yes

Keywords: our tendency, people's mood =  people's emotional state, positive

Answer Location: 11th Paragraph, lines (Being aware of the close relationship between people's emotional state and how they process information can help us frame our messages more effectively and become conscientious agents of change)

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                           Hard Vocabulary List from How stress affects our judgement

Word / Phrase	Meaning (Simple)	Example Sentence
Judgement	The ability to make decisions or form opinions	Stress can impair our judgement.
Cognitive	Related to thinking, memory, and understanding	Stress affects cognitive functions like memory.
Performance	How well a person carries out a task	High stress reduces work performance.
Impulsive	Doing something quickly without thinking	Stress can make people act impulsively.
Perceive	To notice or understand something	People perceive risks differently under stress.
Consequence	The result of an action or decision	Poor decisions often have serious consequences.
Unpredictable	Not able to be expected or guessed	Stress makes human behavior unpredictable.
Cortisol	A hormone released when stressed	Cortisol levels increase under pressure.
Chronic	Long-lasting and continuing	Chronic stress can damage health.
Acute	Sudden and severe	Acute stress can cause immediate changes in thinking.
Resilient	Able to recover quickly from difficulties	Some people are more resilient to stress.
Bias	An unfair preference or influence on judgement	Stress can introduce bias into decision-making.
Trait	A personal quality or characteristic	Impulsiveness is a personality trait.
Impair	To damage or weaken	Stress impairs memory and focus.
Adaptive	Able to adjust to new situations	Stress responses can sometimes be adaptive.
Susceptible	Easily affected by something	Young people may be more susceptible to stress.
Dilemma	A difficult situation requiring a choice	Stress often makes it hard to solve dilemmas.
Erratic	Irregular and unpredictable	Stress can cause erratic decision-making.
Executive function	Higher-level mental skills (planning, self-control)	Stress weakens executive function in the brain.
Overestimate/ underestimate	To judge something as too high or too low	Under stress, people often overestimate risks.

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