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Practice Listening: Highlight Correct Summary ID: #4622 Medium Happiness
Instructions ›
You will hear a recording. Click on the paragraph that best relates to the recording.
It is an age-old question 'does money buy happiness?' and one that a recent study tried to answer. You might think that owning a large house, an expensive car and having a healthy bank account would put a smile on anyone's face. Well, the study concluded that there are actually two types of well-being or contentedness: life evaluation, which is a person's appraisal of their life over a long period, and emotional well-being, which measures their daily emotions, such as happiness and anxiety. It found that people in income brackets above $75,000 per year experience the same ratio of positive and negative emotions on a daily basis, but those with the most money felt happier with their life as a whole. However, this is not the case with people in the lower income brackets. Respondents earning below $75,000 annually reported decreasing levels of happiness, and diminished ability to deal with life's problems.
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Result:

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Option 2: "People earning over $75,000 a year experience the same level of happiness regardless of how much money they earn, but the richest people are happier overall. All those earning below this level are more negatively affected by unwelcome life events."

Explanation: This option accurately summarizes the main points of the text. It reflects the study's conclusion that individuals earning above $75,000 experience similar daily emotions but report greater overall happiness. It also correctly notes that those earning below this threshold report decreasing happiness and struggle more with life's challenges, aligning with the text's emphasis on emotional well-being and life evaluation.

Option 1: "People earning less than $75,000 per year are more likely to desire a bigger house and luxury cars than those earning salaries above this figure. They are also more likely to feel depressed when they cannot acquire these material items."

Explanation: This option misrepresents the text by suggesting that lower-income individuals desire material possessions more than higher-income individuals, which is not stated. The text focuses on emotional well-being and life evaluation rather than material desires. Additionally, it implies a direct correlation between income and depression that is not supported by the study's findings.

Option 3: "People earning over $75,000 feel more content on a day-to-day basis but experience feelings of anxiety about their life as a whole. This feeling encourages them to spend large amounts of money on material things such as cars and houses."

Explanation: This option incorrectly states that higher earners feel anxiety about their life as a whole, which contradicts the text's assertion that they feel happier overall. It also introduces the idea of spending on material items as a result of anxiety, which is not mentioned in the text. The focus should be on emotional well-being rather than materialism.

Option 4: "The figure of $75,000 a year is considered to be the optimal salary to produce happiness in general. Those earning more or less than this amount reported higher degrees of unhappiness both in their daily lives and in their life as a whole."

Explanation: This option misinterprets the text by suggesting that $75,000 is the optimal salary for happiness, which is not stated. The text indicates that those earning above this amount feel happier overall, but it does not claim that those earning less are universally unhappy. The focus is on the emotional well-being of different income brackets rather than a specific optimal salary.

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