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RC Passage
Direction for the questions 11 to 15: The passage below is accompanied by a set of five questions. Choose the best answer to each question.
Economists have spent most of the 20th century ignoring psychology, positive or otherwise. But today there is a great deal of emphasis on how happiness can shape global economies, or â on a smaller scale â successful business practice. This is driven, in part, by a trend in "measuring" positive emotions, mostly so they can be optimized. Neuroscientists, for example, claim to be able to locate specific emotions, such as happiness or disappointment, in particular areas of the brain. Wearable technologies, such as Spire, offer data-driven advice on how to reduce stress.
We are no longer just dealing with "happiness" in a philosophical or romantic sense â it has become something that can be monitored and measured, including by our behavior, use of social media and bodily indicators such as pulse rate and facial expressions.
There is nothing automatically sinister about this trend. But it is disquieting that the businesses and experts driving the quantification of happiness claim to have our best interests at heart, often concealing their own agendas in the process. In the workplace, happy workers are viewed as a "win-win." Work becomes more pleasant, and employees, more productive. But this is now being pursued through the use of performance-evaluating wearable technology, such as Humanyze or Virgin Pulse, both of which monitor physical signs of stress and activity toward the goal of increasing productivity.
Cities such as Dubai, which has pledged to become the "happiest city in the world," dream up ever-more elaborate and intrusive ways of collecting data on well-being â to the point where there is now talk of using CCTV cameras to monitor facial expressions in public spaces. New ways of detecting emotions are hitting the market all the time: One company, Beyond Verbal, aims to calculate moods conveyed in a phone conversation, potentially without the knowledge of at least one of the participants. And Facebook has demonstrated that it could influence our emotions through tweaking our news feeds â opening the door to ever-more targeted manipulation in advertising and influence.
As the science grows more sophisticated, and technologies become more intimate with our thoughts and bodies, a clear trend is emerging. Where happiness indicators were once used as a basis to reform society, challenging the obsession with money that GDP measurement entrenches, they are increasingly used as a basis to transform or discipline individuals.
Happiness becomes a personal project, that each of us must now work on, like going to the gym. Since the 1970s, depression has come to be viewed as a cognitive or neurological defect in the individual, and never a consequence of circumstances. All of this simply escalates the sense of responsibility each of us feels for our own feelings, and with it, the sense of failure when things go badly. A society that deliberately removed certain sources of misery, such as precarious and exploitative employment, may well be a happier one. But we won't get there by making this single, often fleeting emotion, the over-arching goal.
Full RC Video Analysis
RC Line-wise Explanation
Paragraph 1
"Economists have spent most of the 20th century ignoring psychology, positive or otherwise."
Explanation: For much of the 20th century, economists largely disregarded psychology, whether related to positive or negative emotions.
"But today there is a great deal of emphasis on how happiness can shape global economies, or â on a smaller scale â successful business practice."
Explanation: Today, there is increasing attention on how happiness influences economies globally and how it can be used to drive success in business.
"This is driven, in part, by a trend in 'measuring' positive emotions, mostly so they can be optimized."
Explanation: This shift is partly due to the trend of measuring emotions, especially positive ones, so they can be improved or maximized.
"Neuroscientists, for example, claim to be able to locate specific emotions, such as happiness or disappointment, in particular areas of the brain."
Explanation: Neuroscientists assert that they can pinpoint the exact locations in the brain where emotions like happiness and disappointment are generated.
"Wearable technologies, such as Spire, offer data-driven advice on how to reduce stress."
Explanation: Wearable technologies like Spire use data to offer suggestions on how to reduce stress.
Paragraph 2
"We are no longer just dealing with 'happiness' in a philosophical or romantic sense â it has become something that can be monitored and measured, including by our behavior, use of social media and bodily indicators such as pulse rate and facial expressions."
Explanation: Happiness is no longer just a theoretical or emotional concept; it is something measurable through our actions, social media use, and physical indicators like pulse rate and facial expressions.
Paragraph 3
"There is nothing automatically sinister about this trend."
Explanation: There is nothing inherently wrong or harmful about this trend of measuring happiness.
"But it is disquieting that the businesses and experts driving the quantification of happiness claim to have our best interests at heart, often concealing their own agendas in the process."
Explanation: However, it is concerning that businesses and experts who are pushing for measuring happiness often hide their true motivations while claiming to act in our best interests.
"In the workplace, happy workers are viewed as a 'win-win.'"
Explanation: In the workplace, having happy employees is seen as beneficial for both the employees and the organization.
"Work becomes more pleasant, and employees, more productive."
Explanation: When employees are happy, work becomes more enjoyable, and employees tend to be more productive.
"But this is now being pursued through the use of performance-evaluating wearable technology, such as Humanyze or Virgin Pulse, both of which monitor physical signs of stress and activity toward the goal of increasing productivity."
Explanation: This happiness-driven approach is now being implemented using wearable technology that tracks stress and activity levels to boost productivity.
Paragraph 4
"Cities such as Dubai, which has pledged to become the 'happiest city in the world,' dream up ever-more elaborate and intrusive ways of collecting data on well-being â to the point where there is now talk of using CCTV cameras to monitor facial expressions in public spaces."
Explanation: Cities like Dubai, aiming to become the happiest city, are coming up with increasingly complex and invasive methods to gather data on people's well-being, including using CCTV cameras to monitor facial expressions in public.
"New ways of detecting emotions are hitting the market all the time: One company, Beyond Verbal, aims to calculate moods conveyed in a phone conversation, potentially without the knowledge of at least one of the participants."
Explanation: New emotion-detecting technologies are emerging regularly; for example, Beyond Verbal plans to analyze moods in phone conversations, potentially without one participant being aware.
"And Facebook has demonstrated that it could influence our emotions through tweaking our news feeds â opening the door to ever-more targeted manipulation in advertising and influence."
Explanation: Facebook has shown that it can affect people's emotions by adjusting their news feeds, which could lead to even more precise manipulation through advertising and influence.
Paragraph 5
"As the science grows more sophisticated, and technologies become more intimate with our thoughts and bodies, a clear trend is emerging."
Explanation: As the science of emotion detection advances and technologies become more integrated with our thoughts and bodies, a noticeable trend is forming.
"Where happiness indicators were once used as a basis to reform society, challenging the obsession with money that GDP measurement entrenches, they are increasingly used as a basis to transform or discipline individuals."
Explanation: Happiness indicators were once used to challenge society's obsession with money (as seen in GDP measurements), but now they are being used to influence or control individuals.
Paragraph 6
"Happiness becomes a personal project, that each of us must now work on, like going to the gym."
Explanation: Happiness is now seen as something personal that individuals must actively work on, much like going to the gym.
"Since the 1970s, depression has come to be viewed as a cognitive or neurological defect in the individual, and never a consequence of circumstances."
Explanation: Since the 1970s, depression has been regarded as an individual mental or neurological issue, rather than something caused by external factors or circumstances.
"All of this simply escalates the sense of responsibility each of us feels for our own feelings, and with it, the sense of failure when things go badly."
Explanation: This shift increases the individualâs sense of responsibility for their emotions, leading to a heightened sense of failure when things donât go well.
"A society that deliberately removed certain sources of misery, such as precarious and exploitative employment, may well be a happier one."
Explanation: A society that eliminates sources of misery, like unstable and exploitative jobs, could be a happier one.
"But we won't get there by making this single, often fleeting emotion, the over-arching goal."
Explanation: However, focusing solely on happiness as a fleeting emotion won't lead to this kind of societal change.
RC Paragraph Explanation
Paragraph 1 Summary
Economists have largely ignored psychology in the past, but now there is a growing focus on how happiness impacts global economies and business success, driven by the trend of measuring and optimizing positive emotions through technology.
Paragraph 2 Summary
Happiness has evolved from a philosophical or romantic concept into something that can be monitored and measured using tools like social media and physical indicators such as pulse rate and facial expressions.
Paragraph 3 Summary
While measuring happiness isn't inherently negative, it becomes concerning when businesses and experts use this data to pursue their own agendas, such as increasing productivity by using wearable technology to track stress and physical activity in the workplace.
Paragraph 4 Summary
Cities like Dubai are going to great lengths to collect data on citizensâ well-being, including using facial recognition technology, while companies like Facebook manipulate emotions through news feed adjustments for targeted advertising.
Paragraph 5 Summary
As technology becomes more sophisticated, happiness indicators, once used to challenge the pursuit of wealth, are increasingly used to control and discipline individuals, shaping their behavior.
Paragraph 6 Summary
Happiness is now seen as a personal responsibility, akin to fitness, with the rise of individualistic approaches to mental health. This has led to an increased sense of responsibility and failure when things go wrong. A society that removes sources of misery, like poor employment conditions, may be happier, but this wonât be achieved by focusing solely on happiness.
RC Quick Table Summary
| Paragraph Number | Main Idea |
|---|---|
| Paragraph 1 | Economists are now focusing on happiness and its impact on global economies and business success, fueled by the measurement of positive emotions. |
| Paragraph 2 | Happiness is now measurable through behavior, social media, and bodily indicators. |
| Paragraph 3 | While the trend of measuring happiness is not inherently negative, it can be exploited by businesses for their own benefit, such as using wearable tech to boost productivity. |
| Paragraph 4 | Cities and companies are finding new ways to collect data on well-being, even manipulating emotions through technology like facial recognition and news feed adjustments. |
| Paragraph 5 | Happiness indicators are increasingly used to control and discipline individuals, shifting from a tool for societal reform to one for individual transformation. |
| Paragraph 6 | Happiness is now a personal responsibility, and a society that addresses external sources of misery may be happier, but focusing solely on happiness is not the solution. |
RC Questions
Ques 11. In the authorâs opinion, the shift in thinking in the 1970s:
Ques 12. The authorâs view would be undermined by which of the following research findings?
Ques 13. According to the author, Dubai:
Ques 14. According to the author, wearable technologies and social media are contributing most to:
Ques 15. From the passage we can infer that the author would like economists to:
