A new study suggests that contrary to most surveys, people are actually more stressed at home than at work. Researchers measured people’s cortisol, which is a stress marker, while they were at work and while they were at home and found it higher at what is supposed to be a place of refuge.
“Further contradicting conventional wisdom, we found that women as well as men have lower levels of stress at work than at home, ” writes one of the researchers, Sarah Damske. In fact women even say they feel better at work, she notes.“ It is men, not women, who report being happier at home than at work. ”Another surprise is that findings hold true for both those with children and without, but more so for nonparents. This is why people who work outside the home have better health.
What the study doesn’t measure is whether people are still doing work when they’re at home, whether it is household work or work brought home from the office. For many men, the end of the workday is a time to kick back. For women who stay home, they never get to leave the office. And for women who work outside the home, they often are playing catch-up-with-household tasks. With the blurring of roles, and the fact that the home front lags well behind the workplace a making adjustments for working women, it’s not surprising that women are more stressed at home.
But it’s not just a gender thing. At work, people pretty much know what they’re supposed to be doing: working, marking money, doing the tasks they have to do in order to draw an income. The bargain is very pure: Employee puts in hours of physical or mental labor and employee draws out life-sustaining moola.
On the home front, however, people have no such clarity. Rare is the household in which the division of labor is so clinically and methodically laid out. There are a lot of tasks to be done, there are inadequate rewards for most of them. Your home colleagues-your family-have no clear rewards for their labor; they need to be talked into it, or if they’re teenagers, threatened with complete removal of all electronic devices. Plus, they’re your family. You cannot fire your family. You never really get to go home from home.
So it’s not surprising that people are more stressed at home. Not only are the tasks apparently infinite, the co-workers are much harder to motivate.
1.According to Paragraph 1,most previous surveys found that home_____
[A] offered greater relaxation than the workplace
[B] was an ideal place for stress measurement
[C] generated more stress than the workplace
[D] was an unrealistic place for relaxation
2. According to Damaske, who are likely to be the happiest at home?
[A] Childless wives
[B] Working mothers
[C] Childless husbands
[D] Working fathers
3.The blurring of working women's roles refers to the fact that_____
[A] it is difficult for them to leave their office
[B] their home is also a place for kicking back
[C] there is often much housework left behind
[D] they are both bread winners and housewives
4.The word“moola”(Line4,Para4)most probably means_____
[A] skills
[B] energy
[C] earnings
[D] nutrition
5.The home front differs from the workplace in that_____
[A] division of labor at home is seldom clear-cut
[B] home is hardly a cozier working environment
[C] household tasks are generally more motivating
[D] family labor is often adequately rewarded
文章分析
原文标题为Why You're More Stressed by Home than Work，属于社会生活范畴。文章主要探讨了与压力有关的一个报告研究。文章首段开门见山，指出：最新的调查报告颠覆了人们的常识，显示人们在家的压力比工作时更大。第二段，引用研究人员话语，进一步重申报告结果，并指出女性尤甚。第三段指出研究未涉及的内容，解释了与男性相比，女性在家压力更大。第四、五段分别解释了女性压力更大的原因，指出压力大不仅与性别相关，还与在家的分工、报酬等相关。最后一段重申主题，指出任务重，合作者难以驱动是在家压力更大的原因。
试题解析
1.根据第一段，大多数以前的研究发现家________。
[A] 不是休闲放松的理想场所
[B] 与工作场所相比，产生了更多压力
[C] 是测量压力的理想场所
[D]与工作场所相比，提供了更多的休闲
【答案】D
【考点】细节题
【命题思路】这是一道细节题。主要考查考生准确理解题干，精准定位，并能正确划分和掌握定位信息的能力。
【直击答案】根据题干关键词“Paragraph 1，most previous surveys”定位到首段首句。由A new study suggests that contrary to most surveys可知most previous surveys和a new study的研究结论相反，即正确答案和people are actually more stressed at home than at work表述的意思相反。对比四个选项可知D项为正确答案。
【干扰排除】A项属过度推理，原文虽提到在家比在工作中有更多的压力，但并不能推测出“不是休闲放松的理想场所”。B项属于偷换概念，虽首段第一句出现了“more stress”以及“the workplace”，但文章中是指“人们感到在家比在工作中压力更大”，而不是B项所指的“家能产生更多的压力”。C项指“家是测量压力的理想场所”，属于无中生有。
2.在Damaske看来，谁在家里最快乐?
[A] 工作中的母亲。
[B] 没有孩子的丈夫。
[C] 没有孩子的妻子。
[D] 工作中的父亲。
【答案】B
【考点】细节题
【命题思路】这是一道细节题。主要考查考生准确理解题干，精准定位，并能正确掌握定位信息，辨别干扰选项的能力。
【直击答案】根据题干关键信息“Damaske”定位到第二段第三、四句，即Damaske的观点。这两句提到“It is men，not women, who report being happier at home than at work…， but more so for nonparents.”，即“研究发现是男人，而不是女人，在家比在工作中更高兴。更令人吃惊的是，这种情况对有无孩子都一样，尤其是对于没有孩子的人。”综合对比，确定B为最佳答案。
【干扰排除】A、C项两项均为反向干扰，原文说的是男人比女人在家更快乐，故排除。根据该句“but more so for nonparents”可知D项错误，原文是没有孩子的男性，并非工作中的父亲。
3. 职场女性的模糊角色指的是________。
[A] 她们既要在职场打拼又要照顾家庭
[B] 家也是她们休息的地方
[C] 有太多家务等着她们去做
[D] 她们很难离开办公室
【答案】A
【考点】推理题
【命题思路】这是一道推理题。主要考查考生精准理解原文定位信息，查找相互关联，并进行适度推理的能力。
【直击答案】根据题干关键信息“blurring of …roles”定位到第三段末句“With the blurring of roles，…”。但从中并不能找到答案，故推测答案在上文，最终锁定在“For many men, the end of the workday is …， with the blurring of role…”。意思是“对男性而言，一天工作结束后他们便可以休息，但对女性来说，离开办公室之后，还有很多家务活”。由此可以推出，“The blurring of working women's roles” 指的是女性既要上班又要照顾家庭。综合判断，确定A项为最佳答案。
【干扰排除】B项为反向干扰，原文指出女性下班回家后，还有很多家务要做，故排除。C项以偏概全，只强调了“the blurring roles”中“家务活”这个方面，故排除。D项是张冠李戴，选项内容属于“women who stay home”的信息，故排除。
4. 单词“moola”(第四段四行)的意思为________。
[A] 能量
[B] 技能
[C] 收入
[D] 营养
【答案】C
【考点】词义题
【命题思路】这是一道词义猜测题。主要考查考生借助上下文语境，猜测生词词义的能力。
【直击答案】根据题干关键信息“moola”(Line 4，Para. 4)”定位到第四段“Employee puts in hours of physical or mental labor and employee draws out life-sustaining moola”。本句讲劳动与所得的关系，也就是雇员付出一定的体力、脑力劳动，从而得到维持生活的______。根据常识，可知此空应填入“收入，工资”;此外，在本段中复现了“making money，income”，由此可进一步确定C项为正确答案。
【干扰排除】A项指“能量”，B项指“技能”;D项nutrition指“营养”，都不符合语义，故排除。
5. 家庭和工作场所的差别在于________。
[A] 家不是舒适的工作环境
[B] 在家里，并无明确分工
[C] 家务通常更具激励性
[D] 家务通常可以得到充分奖励
【答案】B
【考点】细节题
【命题思路】细节题。本题主要考查考生准确理解题干，精准定位并正确理解定位信息，辨别干扰选项的能力。
【直击答案】根据出题的顺序性原则，本题定位到倒数第二段首句。本句 “on the home front，however，people have no such clarity”，表明在家里，人们的分工不会像工作场所那么明确，从而导致女性在家里压力大，A项“division of labor at home is seldom clear¬cut”是对此信息的同义替换，为最佳答案。
【干扰排除】A项属于无中生有信息。原文并未提及家务活是否更具motivating，C项无中生有。D项与原文信息“there are inadequate rewards for most of them.”不符合，属于反向干扰，故排除。
