Question

Americans gave nearly $300 billion away last year. Do you know the reason? Beyond the noble goals of helping others, it is that giving will make them happier.

It is a fact that givers are happier people than non-givers. According to the Social Capital Community Benchmark Survey, a survey of 30,000 American households, people who give money to charity are 43% more likely than non-givers to say they are “very happy” about their lives. Similarly, volunteers are 42% more likely to be very happy then non-volunteers.

The happiness difference between givers and non-givers is not due to differences in their personal characteristics, such as income or religion. Imagine two people who are identical in terms of income and faith, as well as age, education, politics, sex, and family circumstances, but one donates money and volunteers, while the other does not. The giver will be, on average, over 40 percentage points more likely to be very happy than the non-givers.

A number of studies have researched exactly why charity leads to happiness. The surprising conclusion is that giving affects our brain chemistry. For example, people who give often report feelings of euphoria, which psychologists have referred to as the “Helper’s High”. They believe that charitable activity produces a very mild version of the sensations people get from drugs like morphine and heroin.

Of course, not only does giving increase our happiness, but also our happiness increases the possibility that we will give. Everyone prefers to give more when they are happy. Researchers have investigated this by conducting experiments in which people are asked about their happiness before and after they participate in a charitable activity, such as volunteering to help children or serving meals to the poor. The result is clear that giving has a strong, positive causal impact on our happiness, so does happiness on giving

1.According to Paragraph 2. We can learn that .

A. only those people who gave money to charity will be happy

B. more givers say they feel having happy lives than non-givers

C. those who donate money are happier than those who volunteer

D. 42% of the volunteers say they are as happy as the non-volunteers

2.What causes the happiness difference?

A. Income. B. Faith. C. Education. D. Donation.

3.The underlined word “euphoria” in Paragraph 4 is closest in meaning to .

A. relaxation B. uncertainty

C. nervousness D. pleasure

4.If a person feels happy, he may .

A. ask for more donations B. stop charitable activity

C. be likely to give more D. cook food for the poor

5.Which of the following is the main theme of this passage?

A. Giving brings happiness. B. Americans love donating.

C. The happiness difference. D. Feelings of volunteers.

Answer 1

1.B

2.D

3.D

4.C

5.A

【解析】

试题分析：本文主要介绍了美国人爱做慈善，因为给予别人帮助比得到帮助更让人快乐。主要考查细节理解题。

1.B细节理解题。根据 “people who give money to charity are 43% more likely than non-givers to say they are “very happy” about their lives.”可知给予者比得到帮助者更快乐。故选B。

2.2】D细节理解题。根据第二段年龄，性别，收入，信仰，家庭环境都相同的两个人，总是向慈善机构捐钱的那个人，更快乐。可知是捐赠和给予影响一个人的快乐。故选D。

3.3】D猜测词意题。整篇文章可知，给予者比得到帮助者更快乐。所以此处是指给予者有快乐的感受。故选D。

4.4】C细节理解题。根据最后一段“not only does giving increase our happiness, but also our happiness increases the possibility that we will give.”一个人越快乐就越愿意去捐赠，去帮助别人。

5.5】A主旨大意题。全文主要讲了经常做慈善的人要快乐的多。分析了这一现象的原因。最后还说了越快乐的人，越愿意付出。故选A。

考点：社会现象类短文