Text 1It seems clear that emotional contagion (the unintentional transfer of an emotional state from one person to another) requires...
GMAT Craft and Structure : (Structure) Questions
Text 1
It seems clear that emotional contagion (the unintentional transfer of an emotional state from one person to another) requires physical interaction and the observation of body language. After all, research shows that talking to someone who is smiling and expressing positive feelings often causes people to respond in a comparably positive way. Similarly, displays of nervous fidgeting have been found to prompt others to begin behaving more nervously, too.
Text 2
In an experiment using a social networking service, Zeyao Yang and Emilio Ferrara found evidence of emotional contagion in text-based online interactions. The researchers discovered that reading social media posts that expressed a positive outlook led people to make more positive posts themselves, while posts with a negative emotional tone led people to make more negative posts.
Based on the texts, what would the researchers in Text 2 most likely say about the claim underlined in Text 1?
It perpetuates a flawed understanding of emotional contagion, because there isn't enough evidence to suggest that smiling is a sign of emotional contagion.
It reflects an incomplete view of emotional contagion, because this phenomenon can occur even without in-person interaction.
It's fairly persuasive, because studies attempting to identify emotional contagion in situations without in-person interaction have thus far yielded unclear results.
It's mostly accurate, because the social networking study confirmed that emotional contagion primarily occurs in response to negative emotions like nervousness.
Step 1: Decode and Map the Passage
Create Passage Analysis Table
| Text from Passage | Analysis |
|---|---|
| "It seems clear that emotional contagion (the unintentional transfer of an emotional state from one person to another) requires physical interaction and the observation of body language." |
|
| "After all, research shows that talking to someone who is smiling and expressing positive feelings often causes people to respond in a comparably positive way." |
|
| "Similarly, displays of nervous fidgeting have been found to prompt others to begin behaving more nervously, too." |
|
| "In an experiment using a social networking service, Zeyao Yang and Emilio Ferrara found evidence of emotional contagion in text-based online interactions." |
|
| "The researchers discovered that reading social media posts that expressed a positive outlook led people to make more positive posts themselves, while posts with a negative emotional tone led people to make more negative posts." |
|
Provide Passage Architecture & Core Elements
Main Point: Two texts present different views on what emotional contagion requires—Text 1 argues it needs physical interaction, while Text 2 shows it can happen through text alone.
Argument Flow: Text 1 establishes that emotional contagion requires seeing people physically and provides face-to-face examples as proof. Text 2 then presents research showing this same phenomenon occurring in purely text-based online environments.
Step 2: Interpret the Question Precisely
What's being asked? We need to determine how the Text 2 researchers would respond to the specific claim in Text 1.
What type of answer do we need? Their likely reaction or critique of Text 1's claim about emotional contagion requiring physical interaction.
Any limiting keywords? N/A
Step 3: Prethink the Answer
- The Text 2 researchers found emotional contagion happening in text-based online interactions—no physical presence, no body language observation
- This directly contradicts Text 1's claim that these elements are required
- So the researchers would likely say that Text 1's view is too narrow or incomplete, since their study proves emotional contagion can happen without physical interaction
It perpetuates a flawed understanding of emotional contagion, because there isn't enough evidence to suggest that smiling is a sign of emotional contagion.
✗ Incorrect
- Focuses on whether smiling specifically proves emotional contagion, missing the main issue about physical interaction requirements
It reflects an incomplete view of emotional contagion, because this phenomenon can occur even without in-person interaction.
✓ Correct
- Identifies the claim as showing an incomplete view of emotional contagion and directly addresses that Text 2 proves emotional contagion can occur without in-person interaction
It's fairly persuasive, because studies attempting to identify emotional contagion in situations without in-person interaction have thus far yielded unclear results.
✗ Incorrect
- Claims Text 1 is persuasive and that studies without in-person interaction have unclear results, which contradicts Text 2's clear findings
It's mostly accurate, because the social networking study confirmed that emotional contagion primarily occurs in response to negative emotions like nervousness.
✗ Incorrect
- Says Text 1 is mostly accurate and misrepresents Text 2's findings about both positive and negative emotional contagion