gwd-20-34,35

nina_nn

 Firms traditionally claim that they

       downsize (i.e., make permanent

       personnel cuts) for economic reasons,

Line       laying off supposedly unnecessary staff

  (5)      in an attempt to become more efficient

and competitive.  Organization theory

would explain this reasoning as an

example of the “economic rationality”

that it assumes underlies all organi-

 (10)      zational activities.  There is evidence

that firms believe they are behaving

rationally whenever they downsize; yet

recent research has shown that the

actual economic effects of downsizing

 (15)      are often negative for firms.  Thus,

organization theory cannot adequately

explain downsizing; non-economic

factors must also be considered.

One such factor is the evolution of

 (20)      downsizing into a powerful business

       myth:  managers simply believe that

       downsizing is efficacious.  Moreover,

downsizing nowadays is greeted

favorably by the business press; the

 (25)      press often refers to soaring stock

prices of downsizing firms (even though

research shows that stocks usually

rise only briefly after downsizing and

then suffer a prolonged decline).

 (30)      Once viewed as a sign of desperation,

downsizing is now viewed as a signal

that firms are serious about competing

       in the global marketplace; such signals

are received positively by key actors—

 (35)
                       financial analysts, consultants,

shareholders—who supply firms with

vital organizing resources.  Thus, even

if downsizers do not become economi-

      cally more efficient, downsizing’s mythic

 (40)     properties give them added prestige

in the business community, enhancing

their survival prospects.

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Q34:

The primary purpose of the passage is to

             

1. criticize firms for engaging in the practice of downsizing
2. analyze the negative economic impact of downsizing on firms
3. offer an alternative to a traditional explanation for the occurrence of downsizing
4. chronicle how perceptions of downsizing have changed over time
5. provide evidence disputing the prevalence of downsizing

 

答案是c,我选的b~~

 

 

Q35:

The passage suggests that downsizing’s mythic properties can be beneficial to a downsizing firm because these properties

             

1. allow the firm to achieve significant operating efficiencies
2. provide the firm with access to important organizing resources
3. encourage a long-term increase in the firm’s stock price
4. make the firm less reliant on external figures such as financial analysts and consultants
5. discourage the firm’s competitors from entering the global marketplace

答案是b，我觉得是A。。。。。。

Answer:

wei_wangyan

Firms traditionally claim that they
        

       downsize (i.e., make permanent

       personnel cuts) for economic reasons, 传统观点：downsize是出于经济原因……

Line       laying off supposedly unnecessary staff

  (5)      in an attempt to become more efficient

and competitive.  Organization theory

would explain this reasoning as an

example of the “economic rationality”

that it assumes underlies all organi-

 (10)      zational activities.  There is evidence

that firms believe they are behaving

rationally whenever they downsize; yet

recent research has shown that the

actual economic effects of downsizing

 (15)      are often negative for firms.  Thus,

organization theory cannot adequately

explain downsizing; non-economic

factors must also be considered.

然而近期研究表明downsize带来的经济影响常常是负面的。（只是一笔带过，仅为了说明原来的解释行不通，没有analyze）

因此，传统理论无法准确解释downsizie，一定存有非经济因素……

One such factor is the evolution of

 (20)      downsizing into a powerful business

       myth:  managers simply believe that

       downsizing is efficacious.  Moreover,

downsizing nowadays is greeted

favorably by the business press; the

 (25)      press often refers to soaring stock

prices of downsizing firms (even though

research shows that stocks usually

rise only briefly after downsizing and

then suffer a prolonged decline).

 (30)     
                        Once viewed as a sign of desperation,

downsizing is now viewed as a signal

that firms are serious about competing

       in the global marketplace; such signals

are received positively by key actors—

 (35)
                       financial analysts, consultants,

shareholders—who supply firms with

vital organizing resources.  Thus, even

if downsizers do not become economi-

      cally more efficient, downsizing’s mythic

 (40)     properties give them added prestige

in the business community, enhancing

their survival prospects.            ----35题定位：important organizing resources就是vital organizing resources, 是key actors提供的，而这些key actors通常是积极地接受那些（downsizing带来的）信号。

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Q34:

The primary purpose of the passage is to

             

1. criticize firms for engaging in the practice of downsizing
           
2. analyze the negative economic impact of downsizing on firms
           
3. offer an alternative to a traditional explanation for the occurrence of downsizing
           
4. chronicle how perceptions of downsizing have changed over time
           
5. provide evidence disputing the prevalence of downsizing

 

答案是c,我选的b~~

 

 

Q35:

The passage suggests that downsizing’s mythic properties can be beneficial to a downsizing firm because these properties

             

1. allow the firm to achieve significant operating efficiencies 原文没有提营运效率的提高。
2. provide the firm with access to important organizing resources
           
3. encourage a long-term increase in the firm’s stock price
           
4. make the firm less reliant on external figures such as financial analysts and consultants
           
5. discourage the firm’s competitors from entering the global marketplace

答案是b，我觉得是A。。。。。。