INSTRUCTION: Answer question about text.
TEXT
One stereotype of wisdom is a wizened Zen-master
smiling benevolently at the antics of his pupils, while
referring to them as little grasshoppers, safe in the
knowledge that one day they, too, will have been set
[5] on the path that leads to wizened masterhood. ______
A study two years ago in North America, by Igor
Grossmann of the University of Waterloo, in Canada,
suggested that it is. In as much as it is possible to
quantify wisdom, Dr. Grossmann found that elderly
[10] Americans had more of it than youngsters. Now he
has extended his investigation to Asia – the land of
the wizened Zen-master – and, in particular, to Japan.
There, he found, in contrast to the West, that the
grasshoppers are their masters’ equals almost from
[15] the beginning.
Dr. Grossmann’s study, just published in
Psychological Science, recruited 186 Japanese from
various walks of life and compared them with 225
Americans. Participants were asked to read a series of
[20] pretend newspaper articles and then asked “What do
you think will happen after that?” The responses were
scored on a scale of one to three, to capture the degree
to which they discussed what psychologists consider
five crucial aspects of wise reasoning: willingness to
[25] seek opportunities to resolve conflict; willingness to
search for compromise; recognition of the limits of
personal knowledge; awareness that more than one
perspective on a problem can exist; and appreciation
of the fact that things may get worse before they get
[30] better.
Taken at face value, these results suggest
Japanese learn wisdom faster than Americans.
Generally, America is seen as an individualistic society,
whereas Japan is quite collectivist. Yet Japanese
[35] have higher scores than Americans for the sort of
interpersonal wisdom you might think would be useful
in an individualistic society. Americans, by contrast – at
least in the maturity of old age – have more intergroup
wisdom than the purportedly collectivist Japanese.
[40] Perhaps, then, you need individual skills when society
is collective, and social ones when it is individualistic.
(Source: The Economist. Internet site April 11, 2012)
Glossary:
wizened (adj) old and with a lot of wrinkles on the skin. E.g. a wizened old man.
antics (noun) behavior that is funny or silly in an enjoyable way.
pretend (adj) imaginary. E.g. The kids are passing around pretend cookies.
The Japanese who participated in this study
