When John was growing up, other kids felt sorry for him. His parents always had him weeding the garden, carrying out the garbage and delivering newspapers. But when John reached adulthood, he was better off than his childhood playmates. He had more job satisfaction, a better marriage and was healthier. Most of all, he was happier. Far happier.
当约翰还在成长的时候，其他孩子都为他感到难过。他的父母总是让他除草、倒垃圾和送报纸。但是当约翰成年后，他比他的童年玩伴们过得更好。他对工作更满意，婚姻更好，也更健康。最重要的是，他更快乐，快乐得多。

These are the findings of a 40-year study that followed the lives of 456 teenage boys from Boston. The study showed that those who had worked as boys enjoyed happier and more productive lives than those who had not. “Boys who worked in the home or community gained competence (能力) and came to feel they were worthwhile members of society,” said George Vaillant, the psychologist (心理学家) who made the discovery. “And because they felt good about themselves, others felt good about them.”
这些发现来自一项为期40年的研究，该研究跟踪了456名波士顿的青少年男孩的生活。研究表明，那些曾经工作过的男孩比那些没有工作过的男孩享有更快乐、更有成效的生活。“在家庭或社区工作过的男孩获得了能力，并开始感到自己是社会中有价值的成员，”发现这一现象的心理学家乔治·瓦利安特说。“因为他们对自己感觉良好，其他人也对他们感觉良好。”

Vaillant’s study followed these males in great detail. Interviews were repeated at ages 25, 31 and 47. Under Vaillant, the researchers compared the men’s mental-health scores with their boyhood-activity scores with their boyhood-activity scores. Points were awarded for part-time jobs, housework, effort in school, and ability to deal with problems.
瓦利安特的研究非常详细地跟踪了这些男性。在25岁、31岁和47岁时重复进行了访谈。在瓦利安特的领导下，研究人员将这些男性的心理健康评分与他们童年时期的活动评分进行了比较。对于兼职工作、家务、学校努力以及解决问题的能力都给予了分数。

The link between what the men had done as boys and how they turned out as adults was surprisingly sharp. Those who had done the most boyhood activities were twice as likely to have warm relations with a wide variety of people, five times as likely to be well paid and 16 times less likely to have been unemployed. The researchers also found that IQ and family social and economic class made no real difference in how the boys turned out. Working——at any age——is important. Childhood activities help a child develop responsibility, independence, confidence and competence—-the underpinnings (基础) of emotional health. They also help him understand that people must cooperate and work toward common goals. The most competent adults are those who know how to do this. Yet work isn’t everything. As Tolstoy once said, “One can live magnificently in this world if one knows how to work and how to love, to work for the person one loves and to love one’s work.”
男性在童年时期所做的事情与他们成年后的表现之间的联系出人意料地明显。那些参与了最多童年活动的男性，与其他人建立温暖关系的可能性是其他人的两倍，获得高薪的可能性是五倍，失业的可能性则低了16倍。研究人员还发现，智商和家庭的社会经济地位对这些男孩的成长结果并没有真正的影响。工作——在任何年龄——都是重要的。童年活动帮助孩子培养责任感、独立性、自信和能力——这是情感健康的基础。它们还帮助他们理解人们必须合作并朝着共同的目标努力。最有能力的成年人是那些知道如何做到这一点的人。然而，工作并不是一切。正如托尔斯泰所说：“如果一个人知道如何工作和如何爱，为所爱的人工作，爱自己的工作，他就可以在这个世界上最辉煌地生活。”

1. What do we know about John?
   A. He enjoyed his career and marriage.
   B. He had few childhood playmates.
   C. He received little love from his family.
   D. He was envied by others in his childhood.
   答案：A

2. Vaillant’s words in Paragraph 2 serve as _.
   A. a description of personal values and social values
   B. an analysis of how work was related to competence
   C. an example for parents’ expectations of their children
   D. an explanation why some boys grew into happy men
   答案：D

3. Vaillant’s team obtained their findings by _.
   A. recording the boys’ effort in school
   B. evaluating the men’s mental health
   C. comparing different sets of scores
   D. measuring the men’s problem solving ability
   答案：C

4. What does the underlined word “sharp” probably mean in Paragraph 4?
   A. Quick to react
   B. Having a thin edge
   C. Clear and definite
   D. sudden and rapid
   答案：C

5. What can be inferred from the last paragraph?
   A. competent adults know more about love than work.
   B. Emotional health is essential to a wonderful adult life.
   C. Love brings more joy to people than work does.
   D. Independence is the key to one’s success.
   答案：B