One period of our lives when better results are demanded of us is, strangely enough, childhood. Despite being young we are expected to achieve good grades, stay out of trouble, make friends at school, do well on tests, perform chores at home and so on. It’s not easy.
The good news is that being likeable can help a child perform better. Likeable children enjoy many advantages, including the ability to cope more easily with stresses of growing up. In her book Understanding Child Stress, Dr. Carolyn Leonard states that children who are likeable and optimistic are able to gain support from others. This leads to focus and resilience, the ability to recover from or adjust early to life stress; a child who has adequate emotional armor can continue down the path to success. Much research shows that resilience has enabled children to succeed in school, avoid drug abuse, and develop a healthy self-awareness.
Why does a likeable child more easily handle stress and do better in his or her life? Because likeability helps create what’s known as a positive feedback loop. The positive feelings you want to see in other people are returned to you, creating constant encouragement and motivation, to deal with the daily stress of life.
This feedback loop continues into adulthood. To return once again to the example of teaching, learning becomes easier with a likeable personality. Michael Deluecchi of the University of Hawaii reviewed dozens of studies to determine if likeable teachers received good ratings because of their likeability or because they in fact taught well. Deluecchi found that “students who perceive a teacher as likeable, in contrast to those who do not, may be more attentive to the information that the teacher delivers, and they’ll work harder on assignments, and they will learn more”.
You may have noticed this pattern in your own life when you try to give some advice. The more positive your relationship with that person, the more he or she seems to listen, and the more you feel certain that that person has heard you and intends to act on your words.
【小题1】What does the writer imply in the first paragraph?| A．Children are expected more than we usually think. |
| B．Life is not easy for every one of us. |
| C．Better education results in smarter children. |
| D．To be a likeable child is almost impossible. |
| A．They can cope more easily with stress independently. |
| B．They know how to avoid trouble and unpleasant events. |
| C．They are always optimistic and ready to help those in need. |
| D．They can achieve more and understand themselves better. |
| A．To find if a likeable teacher has a positive personality. |
| B．To find if a likeable teacher draws more attention. |
| C．To find how a teacher’s likeability gains popularity. |
| D．To find how a likeable teacher’s teaching style is formed. |
| A．Likeable people do better in life generally. | B．Likeable people do better in their childhood. |
| C．Social creatures enjoy fewer advantages. | D．Likeable people give better advice. |
