Unit 1: Introduction

1.1. Course objectives

In this course, you will have the opportunity to learn new skills in English in order to prepare for
your professional future:

● You will improve your listening skills, by doing exercises with a special focus on note-
taking, and on comparing information from different sources.

● You will learn how to read academic papers efficiently.

● You will learn how to conduct a simple research study in English, and how to write it up
in the format of an academic paper.

● You will acquire specialized vocabulary from your professional area.

● You will learn to understand and use psychology questionnaires in English.

● You will learn how to conduct consultations with patients or their family members, and
to write up your notes after the interview.

● You will learn to express ideas and opinions in professional contexts, and to have
discussions with other people.

1.1.1. Speaking: personal focus

o Which of the objectives in 1.1 is most important for you?

o Which one do you think will be easiest to achieve?

o Which one will be most difficult?

o Discuss your answers with a partner and report back to the class.

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1.1. Introduction to listening tasks.

1.1. Task 1
You are going to hear a discussion on the topic of Psychology and Mental Illness. Please close
your books and listen carefully. You may take notes. After listening, you should try to answer the
following questions, discussing your answer with your partner.

Psychology and Mental Illness

1) What is the discussion mainly about?

a) Whether or not it is possible for mental health professionals to be subjective.
b) How the mental health profession needs to agree on the definitions of new types of
mental illness.
c) The correct treatment of mental health patients.
d) Whether it is a good idea to develop some standard illness definitions that all
practitioners can agree on, and id if this is even possible.

2) Why does the professor mention schizoid behavior?

a) To demonstrate the extent of disagreement among mental health professionals.
b) To show that the public is suspicious of the claimed existence of some diseases.
c) To show that there is now agreement on the fundamental issues facing the mental
health profession.
d) To show that the mental health profession is united in not recognizing certain
diseases.

3) Which of the following are NOT reasons the professor gives for why a ‘united front’ in the
mental health profession is desirable? Choose TWO options.
a) The public would be less trusting of the opinions of mental health professionals.
b) The profession will be less credible if its members can agree with one another on
fundamental issues.
c) Mental health professionals must unite in order to protect each other from public
criticism.
d) So that treatments are the same nationally and internationally.

4) Which of the following statements best represents the professor’s view on the subject?
a) It is relatively easy to reach agreement on general definitions of mental illness.
b) Having broad definitions of mental illness that professionals could agree on would
lend credibility to the mental health profession.
c) All mental health patients who suffer from a similar type of illness to one another
should be treated in the same way.
d) People who try to label mental illness are very superficial and don’t appreciate how
the mind works.

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1.2. Introduction to reading tasks.

1.2.1. As well as reading academic research papers, it is also important to improve your efficiency
and accuracy when reading general texts, such as magazine articles, newspapers reports,
instructions or textbooks. In this course, you will be seeing general reading exercises based on
the TOEFL, Cambridge Advanced and IELTS format. The following text is an example of the IELTS
format.

Read the following text and answer the questions which follow. Compare your answers with a
partner.

Having a laugh
The findings of psychological scientists reveal the importance of humour.

Humans start developing a sense of humour as early as six weeks old when babies begin to laugh
and smile in response to stimuli. Laughter is universal across all human cultures and even exists
in some form in rats, chimps, and bonobos. Like other human emotions and expressions, laughter
and humour provide psychological scientists with rich resources for studying human psychology,
ranging from the development of language to the neuroscience of social perception.

Theories focusing on the evolution of laughter point to it as an important adaptation for social
communication. Take, for example the recorded laughter in TV comedy shows. Back in 1950, US
sound engineer Charles Douglass hated dealing with the unpredictable laughter of live audiences,
so he started recording his own “laugh tracks”. These were intended to help people at home feel
they were in a social situation such as a crowded theatre. Douglass even recorded various types
of laughter, as well as mixtures of laughter from men, women, and children. In doing so, he
picked up a quality of laughter that is now interesting researchers: a simple “haha” communicates
a remarkable amount of socially relevant information.

In one study conducted in 2016 samples of laughter from pairs of English-speaking students were
recorded at the University of California, Santa Cruz. A team made up of more than 30
psychological scientists, anthropologists and biologists then played these recordings to listeners
from 24 diverse societies from indigenous tribes in New Guinea to city-dwellers in India and
Europe. Participants were asked whether they thought the people laughing were friends or
strangers. On average the results were remarkably consistent: worldwide, people’s guesses were
correct approximately 60% of the time.

Researchers have also found that different types of laughter serve as codes to complex human
social hierarchies. A team led by Christopher Ovies from the University of California, San Diego
found that high-status individuals had different laughs from low-status individuals and that
stranger’s judgement of an individual’s social status were influenced by the dominant or
submissive quality of their laughter. In their study, 48 male college students were randomly
assigned to groups of four, with each group composed of two low-status members who had just
joined their college fraternity groups and two high-status members, older students who had been
active in the fraternity for at least two years. Laughter was recorded as each student took a turn
at being teased by the others, involving the use of mildly insulting nicknames. Analysis revealed
that, as expected, high-status individuals produced more dominant laughs and fewer submissive
laughs relative to the low-status individuals. Meanwhile, low-status individuals were more likely

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to change their laughter based on their position of power; that is, newcomers produced more
powerful laughs when they were in the “powerful” role of teasers. Dominant laughter was higher
in pitch, louder, and more varied in tone than submissive laughter.

A random group of volunteers then listened to an equal number of dominant and submissive
laughs from both the high-status and low-status individuals and were asked to estimate the social
status of the laughter. In line with predictions, laughers producing dominant laughs were
perceived to be significantly higher in status than laughers producing submissive laughs. “This
was particularly true for low-status individuals, who were rated as significantly higher in status
when displaying a dominant versus submissive laugh,” Oveiss and colleagues note. “Thus, by
strategically displaying more dominant laughter when the context allows, “low-status individuals
may achieve higher status in the eyes of others”. However, high status individuals were rated as
high-status whether they produced their dominant laugh or tried to do a submissive one.

Another study, conducted by David Cheng and Lu Wang of Australian National University, was
based on the hypothesis that humour might provide a respite from tedious situations in the
workplace. This “mental break” might facilitate the replenishment of mental resources. To test
this theory, the researchers recruited 74 business students, ostensibly for an experiment on
perception. First, the students performed a tedious task in which they had to cross out every
instance of the letter “e” over two pages of text. The students then were randomly assigned to
watch a video clip eliciting either humour, contentment or neutral feelings. Some watched a clip
of the tv comedy Mr. Bean, others a relaxing scene of dolphins swimming in the ocean, and others
a factual video about the management profession.

The students then completed a task requiring persistence in which they were asked to guess the
potential performance of employees based on provided profiles and were told that making ten
correct assessments in a row would lead to a win. However, the software was programmed such
that it was nearly impossible to achieve 10 consecutive correct answers. Participants were allowed
to quit the task at any point. Students who had watched the Mr. Bean clip spent significantly
more time working on the task, making twice as many predictions as the other two groups.

Cheng and Wang then replicated these results in a second study, during which they had
participants complete long multiplication questions by hand. Again, participants who watched the
humorous video spent significantly more time working on this tedious task and completed
questions more correctly than did the students in either of the other groups.

“Although humour has been found to help relieve stress and facilitate social relationships, the
traditional view of task performance implies that individuals should avoid doing things such as
humour that may distract them from the accomplishment of task goals,” Cheng and Wang
conclude. “We suggest that humour is not only enjoyable but more importantly, energising.”

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Questions 1-5: Choose the correct letter A, B, C or D.

1 When referring to laughter in the first paragraph the writer emphasises

A its impact on language.
B its function in human culture
C its value to scientific research.
D its universality in human societies.

2 What does the writer suggest about Charles Douglass?

A He understood the importance of enjoying humour in a group setting.
B He believed that TV viewers at home needed to be told when to laugh.
C He wanted his shows to appeal to people across the social spectrum.
D He preferred shows where the audiences were present in the recording studio.

3 What makes the Santa Cruz study particularly significant?

A the various types of laughter that were studied
B the similar results produced by a wide range of cultures
C the number of different academic disciplines involved
D the many kinds of people whose laughter was recorded

4 Which of the four happened in the San Diego study?

A Some participants became very upset.
B Participants exchanged roles.
C Participants who had not met before became friends.
D Some participants were unable to laugh.

5 In the fifth paragraph, what did the results of the San Diego study suggest?
A It is clear whether a dominant laugh is produced by a high- or low-status person?
B Low-status individuals in a position of power will still produce submissive laughs.
C The submissive laughs of low- and high-status individuals are surprisingly similar.
D High status individuals can always be identified by their way of laughing.

Questions 6-10: Complete the summary using the list of words, A-H, in the box below. Write
the correct letter (A-H) in the gaps below.

In one study at Australian National University, randomly chosen groups of participants were
shown one of three videos, each designed to generate a different kind of (6) ______________.
When all participants were then given a deliberately frustrating task to do, it was found that those
who had watched the (7) ______________ video persisted with the task for longer and tried
harder to accomplish the task than either of the other two groups.
A second study in which participants were asked to perform a particularly (8) ______________
task produced similar results. According to researchers, David Cheng and Lu Wang, these findings
suggest that humour not only reduces (9) _____________ and helps build social connections but
it may also have a (10) ____________ effect on body and mind.

A laughter B relaxing C boring D anxiety E stimulating

F emotion G enjoyment H amusing

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Questions 11-14

Do the following statements agree with the claims of the writer in the reading passage.
YES if the statement agrees with the claims of the writer
NO if the statement contradicts the claims of the writer
NOT GIVEN if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this

11. Participants in the Santa Cruz study were more accurate at identifying the laughs of friends
than those of strangers.

12. The researchers in the San Diego study were correct in their predictions regarding the
behaviour of the high-status individuals.

13. The participants in the Australian National University study were given a fixed amount of time
to complete the task focusing on employee profiles.

14. Cheng and Wang’s conclusions were in line with established notions regarding task
performance.

1.2.2 Now do this TOEFL reading task.

Read the article and answer the questions below. Then, work with a partner and compare your
answers.

Norman Cousins’s Laugh Therapy

In the summer of 1964, well-known writer and editor Norman Cousins became very ill. His body
ached and he felt constantly tired. It was difficult for him to even move around. He consulted his
physician, who did many tests. Eventually he was diagnosed as having ankylosing spondylitis, a
very serious and destructive form of arthritis. His doctor told him that he would become
immobilized and eventually die from the disease. He was told he had only a 1 in 500 chance of
survival.

Despite the diagnosis, Cousins was determined to overcome the disease and survive. He had
always been interested in medicine and had read the book The Stress of Life (1956) by Hans
Selye, an organic chemist, which discussed how body chemistry and health can be damaged by
emotional stress and negative attitudes. This made Cousins think "If negative emotions produce
(negative) changes in the body, wouldn't positive emotions produce positive chemical changes?
Is it possible that love, hope, faith, laughter, confidence, and the will to live have positive
therapeutic value?"

He decided to concentrate on positive emotions as a remedy to heal some of the symptoms of

his ailment. In addition to his conventional medical treatment, he tried to put himself in situations
that would elicit positive emotions. "Laugh therapy" became part of his treatment. He scheduled
time each day for watching comedy films, reading humorous books, and doing other activities
that would bring about laughter and positive emotions. Within eight days of starting his "laugh
therapy" program, his pain began to decrease and he was able to sleep more easily. His body
chemistry even began to change, and doctors were able to see an improvement in his condition!

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He was able to return to work in a few months' time and actually reached complete recovery after
a few years.

Skeptical readers may question the doctor’s preliminary diagnosis, and argue that Cousins was
not really healed because he didn't have the disease in the first place. However, Cousins believes
his recovery is the result of a mysterious mind-body interaction. His "laugh therapy" is a good
example of one of the many alternative, or nonconventional, medical treatments people look to
today.

1. Which of the sentences below best expresses the essential information in the passage excerpt?
Incorrect choices change the meaning in important ways or leave out essential information.

He had always been interested in medicine and had read the book The Stress of Life (1956) by
Hans Selye, an organic chemist, which discussed how body chemistry and health can be damaged
by emotional stress and negative attitudes.

(A) Hans Selye was an organic chemist who wrote a book called The Stress of Life.
(B) Cousins read a book about the effects of negative emotions on body chemistry.
(C) Stress and negative attitudes can cause changes in body chemistry.
(D) Cousins was interested in medicine, so he read the book The Stress of Life.

2. In paragraph 2, the word This refers to

(A) the practice of medicine
(B) the thesis of Hans Selye’s book
(C) the idea of body chemistry
(D) the problem of emotional stress

3. Based on paragraph 2, how did reading the book The Stress of Life affect
Norman Cousins?
(A) It made Cousins decide to write a book about his illness.
(B) It influenced Cousins to refuse conventional medical treatment.
(C) It caused Cousins to become interested in medicine.
(D) It gave Cousins the idea of using positive emotions to heal illness.

4. The word elicit in paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to

(A) produce
(B) end
(C) question
(D) ignore

5. All of the following are mentioned in paragraph 3 as benefits of Cousins’s laugh therapy
EXCEPT
(A) He had less pain.
(B) He became stronger.
(C) His body chemistry started to change.
(D) He could return to work.

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6. Look at the four squares □ that indicate where the following sentence could be added to the

text. Where would the sentence fit best? Circle the letter that shows the point where you would

insert this sentence.

Soon his therapy began to have a positive effect.

A He decided to concentrate on positive emotions as a remedy to heal some of the symptoms of

his ailment. B In addition to his conventional medical treatment, he tried to put himself in
situations that would elicit positive emotions. “Laugh therapy” became part of his treatment. He
scheduled time each day for watching comedy films, reading humorous books, and doing other
activities that would bring about laughter and positive emotions. C Within eight days of starting
his “laugh therapy” program, his pain began to decrease and he was able to sleep more easily.
His body chemistry even began to change, and doctors were able to see an improvement in his
condition! He was able to return to work in a few months' time and actually reached complete
recovery after a few years. D

7. The word skeptical in paragraph 4 is closest in meaning to

(A) angry
(B) doubting
(C) confused
(D) intelligent

8. According to paragraph 4, what does the author say about laugh therapy?
(A) Doctors understand why laugh therapy works.
(B) Laugh therapy works on all types of illnesses.
(C) Not everyone believes that laugh therapy works.
(D) Laugh therapy works better than conventional medicine.

9. Which of the following best describes the author’s presentation of information about Norman
Cousins’s laugh therapy?
(A) The author describes events in Cousins’s life in the order they occurred.
(B) The author compares conventional medical treatment with laugh therapy.
(C) The author discusses two opinions about laugh therapy.
(D) The author argues in favour of using laugh therapy.

10. Read the first sentence of a summary of the article. Then complete the summary by circling
THREE answer choices that express the most important ideas in the article.

Norman Cousins used laugh therapy to cure himself of a deadly disease.

(A) Doctors are studying laugh therapy to see how it works.
(B) Cousins invented laugh therapy to use positive emotions for healing.
(C) Cousins made a complete recovery and went back to work.
(D) The book The Stress of Life was written by chemist Hans Seyle.
(E) Cousins was diagnosed with a deadly form of arthritis.
(F) Cousins watched comedy films and read humourous books.

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 1.3. Listening 2

You will hear a radio presenter called Tom Membory introducing a programme on the subject of
laughter yoga and its founder Dr Kataria. Complete the sentences. (1 point for each correct
answer)

Laughter Yoga

1) Tom compares laughter to __________________ in terms of its emotional benefits.

2) He uses the word_______________ to describe how laughter affects the audience.
3) Dr Katerina first got the idea of laughter therapy from a ________________.
4) Dr Katerina stopped using jokes in his sessions as some people found them ____________.
5) So, he developed ______________ to make them laugh without using jokes.
6) Dr Katerina found that laughter is good for us even when ______________ is not the
stimulus.
7) Dr Katerina claims that medical conditions such as ___________
8) and ____________ may be prevented by laughter.
9) Tom mentions an event called ___________________ at which Dr Katerina often appears.
10) Tom played a game involving pretend _________________ at the laughter yoga session
he attended.

1.4. Speaking Practice: Answer the following questions with your partner. Each of you should
try to develop one answer, speaking for 60-90 seconds.

1) Do you think that people who incorporate humour and laughter into their daily routine generally
benefit from better mental health?
2) Have you or anyone you know ever participated in laughter therapy or laughter yoga?
3) Are there any activities or hobbies that you engage in regularly which naturally bring laughter
into your life?
4) Is it important for people to be able to laugh at themselves?

Questions based on the reading texts:

5) Can you try to explain the details of the Cheng and Lang study on the effect of watching different
types of video clips on performing tedious tasks.
6) Explain the influence Hans Selye’s book “The stress of life” had on Norman Cousins after he was
diagnosed with a life-threatening illness.

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1.5. Personal Qualities

Speaking in pairs: Here are some common adjectives that people use in their CVs. Discuss
which ones you think are important for people who want to work as psychologists.

o adaptable o flexible
o capable o hard-working
o cooperative o helpful
o creative o motivated
o dependable o organized
o diligent o persistent
o effective o punctual
o efficient o reliable
o energetic o responsible
o enthusiastic o trustworthy

Are there any other adjectives you consider important to describe psychologists?

1.5.1. Speaking for a minute

o Think of a friend or family member. You are going to talk about her/him for one minute,
describing her/his personality using some of the adjectives given above, and giving
examples to show what you mean. Make some notes to prepare your one-minute talk,
and then present it to your partner. Your partner will time you.

o Think of a teacher from your school whom you remember well. Again, you are going to
talk about her/him for one minute, describing her/his personality using some of the
adjectives given above, and giving examples to show what you mean. Make some notes
to prepare your one-minute talk, and then present it to your partner. Your partner will
time you.

1.5.2. Antonyms
The words we saw in the speaking exercise describe some traits employers love. No employer
wants to hire someone who is lazy, uncooperative, inefficient, disorganized,
dishonest, irresponsible, or late all the time. On the contrary, they want to hire people who are:
___________________________________.

As you see, many of these opposites are formed using the prefixes “in”, “ir”, “un” and “dis”. Use
a prefix to form the opposites of the adjectives below:
1. Ambitious
2. Sympathetic
3. Imaginative
4. Enthusiastic
5. Fair
6. Competent
7. Friendly
8. Discreet
9. Contented
10. Honest

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1.5.3. Synonyms: Each of the lists below contains three adjectives with a similar meaning, and
one which is quite different. Circle the one which is different.

1. compassionate, sympathetic, biased, considerate

2. flexible, adaptable, versatile, outraged
3. bad-tempered, cranky, cantankerous, long-suffering
4. reticent, garrulous, reserved, taciturn
5. irritable, touchy, prickly, effervescent
6. cheerful, gloomy, sanguine, upbeat
7. reliable, dependable, efficient, trustworthy
8. hard-working, diligent, persistent, organised

1.5.4. Multiple choice

1. A person who dislikes people from other races or cultures can be described as:
A. Aggressive B. Intolerant C. Cruel D. Selfish

2. A person who wants to control others and boss them around is:
A. Harsh B. Domineering C. Insensitive D. Euphoric

3. A person who expects the best to happen is:

A. Sensible B. Calm C. Optimistic D. Excitable

4. A person who is reliable and has plenty of common sense is:

A. Sensitive B. Conscientious C. Responsive D. Sensible

5. A person who is helpful could be described as:

A. Cooperative B. Energetic C. Serviceable D. Utilitarian

6. A person who is down-to-earth could be described as:

A. Patient B. Realistic C. Pretentious D. Sensitive

7. If someone frequently has arguments with people, she is:

A. Quarrelsome B. Steady C. Easy-going D. Resentful

8. If someone says that a teenager is self-conscious, he is probably:

A. Embarrassed B. Proud C. Indignant D. Irate

9. Sometimes people bite their nails because they feel:

A. Exasperated B. Edgy C. Carefree D. Laid-back

10. If we say that someone is thoughtful, we mean that he is:

A. Considerate B. Fussy C. Reckless D.
Discreet

Speaking Task 1 = 5%. Your teacher will give you the details of this task.

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