The Consumer Society

I – Listening Test
Name _______________________________________________ No. _______ Class _________ Date _________________

Text 1
1. You will hear Melissa Sinclair talking about her compulsive shopping habits. Choose the correct
option (a, b or c) to complete the sentences.

1.1 Up to now, Melissa has spent a lot of money on shoes, clothes, furniture and other random
items. It adds up to
a. $98,000
b. $98,00
c. $9,800

1.2 She’s mostly concerned about

a. telling her friends and family about her serious shopping addiction.
b. not being sensible enough to stop shopping compulsively.
c. friends and family finding out how much she has really spent on frivolous items.

1.3 She decided to

a. buy a white leather bag although it was pricy.
b. buy a Balenciaga tote bag although it was expensive.
c. discard the idea of buying a Balenciaga tote bag immediately since it was pricy.

1.4 Melissa’s shopping habits became uncontrollable as she made

a. considerable clothing investments.
b. substantial numbers of cheap purchases.
c. a significant number of high-priced purchases.

1.5 Melissa overspends because

a. it’s a way to compensate for her low self-esteem.
b. she’s a privileged consumer.
c. it’s a way to deal with some of her actual issues.

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 Text 2

2. You will hear three people talking about compulsive buying disorder (CBD). Match the speakers in
column A with the ideas they refer to in column B. All the ideas apply once.

Column A Column B

1. Shopping addiction causes more serious problems.

a. Speaker 1 2. Most people believe it only takes willpower to stop shopping.

b. Speaker 2 3. Lack of inclusion of CBD in the manual of Mental Health Disorders

reveals an underestimation of the problem.
c. Speaker 3
4. Shopping is linked to the promotion of economic growth.

5. Over-shopping may disguise feelings and fill voids.

6. Shopping compulsively isn’t regarded as a serious widespread issue.

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