Second Nature IELTS Reading Passage: Let’s Ace IELTS Reading Exam with these Answers

Before getting on to today’s Second Nature IELTS reading answers topic, let’s take a look at the brief of the reading section. In this section, you will be given 3 to 4 passages along with a set of questions to solve. The questions will always be from the passage not anywhere else. You can finish the answers in a total time of 60 minutes for all the passages. Now, let’s move on to the topic and learn how to tackle the questions.

Second Nature IELTS Reading Answers

Read the sections below carefully to learn how to tackle the toughest reading passages in the IELTS exam.

Second Nature IELTS Reading Answers Paragraph A

Psychologists have long held that a person’s character cannot undergo a transformation in any meaningful way and that the key traits of personality are determined at a very young age. However, researchers have begun looking more closely at ways we can change. Positive psychologists have identified 24 qualities we admire, such as loyalty and kindness, and are studying them to find out why they come so naturally to some people. What they’re discovering is that many of these qualities amount to habitual behaviour that determines the way we respond to the world. The good news is that all this can be learned.

Second Nature IELTS Reading Answers Paragraph B

Some qualities are less challenging to develop than others, optimism being one of them. However, developing qualities requires mastering a range of skills that are diverse and sometimes surprising. For example, to bring more joy and passion into your life, you must be open to experiencing negative emotions. Cultivating such qualities will help you realise your full potential.

The evidence is good that most personality traits can be altered,’ says Christopher Peterson, professor of psychology at the University of Michigan, who cites himself as an example. Inherently introverted, he realised early on that as an academic, his reticence would prove disastrous in the lecture hall. So he learned to be more outgoing and to entertain his classes. ‘Now my extroverted behaviour is spontaneous,’ he says.

Also Read: The Nature and Aims of Archaeology: Find Reading Answers for IELTS Reading Test

Second Nature IELTS Reading Answers Paragraph C

David Fajgenbaum had to make a similar transition. He was preparing for university when he had an accident that put an end to his sports career. On-campus, he quickly found that beyond ordinary counselling, the university had no services for students who were undergoing physical rehabilitation and suffering from depression like him. He, therefore, launched a support group to help others in similar situations. He took action despite his own pain – a typical response of an optimist.

Suzanne Segerstrom, professor of psychology at the University of Kentucky, believes that the key to increasing optimism is through cultivating optimistic behaviour, rather than positive thinking. She recommends you train yourself to pay attention to good fortune by writing down three positive things that come about each day. This will help you convince yourself that favourable outcomes actually happen all the time, making it easier to begin taking action.

Second Nature IELTS Reading Answers Paragraph D

You can recognise a person who is passionate about a pursuit by the way they are so strongly involved in it. Tanya Streeter’s passion is freediving – the sport of plunging deep into the water without tanks or other breathing equipment. Beginning in 1998, she set nine world records and can hold her breath for six minutes. The physical stamina required for this sport is intense but the psychological demands are even more overwhelming.

Streeter learned to untangle her fears from her judgment of what her body and mind could do. ‘In my career as a competitive freediver, there was a limit to what I could do – but it wasn’t anywhere near what I thought it was/ she says.

Second Nature IELTS Reading Answers Paragraph E

Finding a pursuit that excites you can improve anyone’s life. The secret about consuming passions, though, according to psychologist Paul Silvia of the University of North Carolina, is that ‘they require discipline, hard work and ability, which is why they are so rewarding.’ Psychologist Todd Kashdan has this advice for those people taking up a new passion: ‘As a newcomer, you also have to tolerate and laugh at your own ignorance. You must be willing to accept the negative feelings that come your way,’ he says.

Second Nature IELTS Reading Answers Paragraph F

In 2004, physician-scientist Mauro Zappaterra began his PhD research at Harvard Medical School. Unfortunately, he was miserable as his research wasn’t compatible with his curiosity about healing. He finally took a break and during eight months in Santa Fe, Zappaterra learned about alternative healing techniques not taught at Harvard.

When he got back, he switched labs to study how cerebrospinal fluid nourishes the developing nervous system. He also vowed to look for the joy in everything, including failure, as this could help him learn about his research and himself.

Also Read: The Problem of Scarce Resources: An IELTS Topic with Reading Answers

Second Nature IELTS Reading Answers Paragraph G

One thing that can hold joy back is a person’s concentration on avoiding failure rather than their looking forward to doing something well. ‘Focusing on being safe might get in the way of you reaching your goals,’ explains Kashdan. For example, are you hoping to get through a business lunch without embarrassing yourself, or are you thinking about how fascinating the conversation might be?

Usually, we think of courage in physical terms but ordinary life demands something else. For marketing executive Kenneth Pedeleose, it meant speaking out against something he thought was ethically wrong. The new manager was intimidating staff so Pedeleose carefully recorded each instance of bullying and eventually took the evidence to a senior director, knowing his own job security would be threatened. Eventually, the manager was the one to go.

Second Nature IELTS Reading Answers Paragraph H

According to Cynthia Pury, a psychologist at Clemson University, Pedeleose’s story proves the point that courage is not motivated by fearlessness, but by moral obligation. Pury also believes that people can acquire courage. Many of her students said that faced with a risky situation, they first tried to calm themselves down, then looked for a way to mitigate the danger, just as Pedeleose did by documenting his allegations.

Over the long term, picking up a new character trait may help you move toward being the person you want to be. And in the short term, the effort itself could be surprisingly rewarding, a kind of internal adventure.

Second Nature IELTS Reading Passage Questions

IELTS Preparation Questions: True or False

Q. Psychologists have long believed that a person’s character cannot be changed in any significant sense and that essential personality trait are formed at a young age.

Ans. True

Q. Positive psychologists have discovered 25 traits humans appreciate, such as loyalty and kindness, and are researching why some individuals are born with them.

Ans. False

Q. Mauro Zappaterra, a physician-scientist, began his PhD study at Harvard Medical School in 2005.

Ans. False

Q. Most personality qualities can be transformed, according to the data,’ says Christopher Peterson, a psychology professor at the University of Michigan who uses himself as an illustration.

Ans. True

Q. One factor that might stifle joy is a person’s focus on avoiding failure rather than looking forward to achieving success.

Ans. True

Also Read: MCQ Type of Questions in IELTS Reading Exam: Here’s How to do It

IELTS Exam Questions: Vocabulary

Q. The antonym of castigate

Ans. praise

Q. The antonym of bold

Ans. timid

Q. The antonym of abundant

Ans. scarce

Q. The antonym of intrepid

Ans. cowardly

Q. The antonym of tranquil

Ans. excitable

Q. The antonym of concise

Ans. lengthy

Q. The antonym of inception

Ans. conclusion

Q. The synonym of irrelevant

Ans. useless

Q. The synonym of exact

Ans. specific

Q. The synonym of suitable

Ans. uniform

Q. The synonym of important

Ans. essential

Q. The synonym of regret

Ans. remorse

Q. The synonym of strange

Ans. abnormal

Q. The synonym of alike

Ans. same

IELTS Preparation Questions: Fill in The Gaps

Q. Positive psychologists have discovered _______ humans appreciate, such as loyalty and kindness, and are researching why some individuals are born with them.

Ans. 24 traits.

Q. As per ________, a psychologist at Clemson University, Pedeleose’s narrative demonstrates that courage is driven by moral responsibility rather than fearlessness.

Ans. Cynthia Pury

Q. After finally taking a vacation, Zappaterra spent ________ in Santa Fe learning about alternative treatment practices that were not taught at Harvard.

Ans. eight months

Q. Because the new boss was frightening the workers, _________ meticulously documented each incidence of bullying and finally presented the proof to a senior director, despite the fact that his own job security was jeopardised.

Ans. Pedelose

Q. Beginning in 1998, she set _________ world records and can hold her breath for six minutes.

Ans. 9

IELTS Academic Reading Section

In the IELTS academic reading portion, there will be three paragraphs, the sources of which might be:

# Books

# Biography

# Magazine

# Journals

Reading for gist, seeking, deciphering logical arguments, grasping important concepts, and more will be possible. Following each passage, there will be a set of questions.

The passages will include numerous complexities, and applicants must comprehend both the factual and theoretical elements in order to correctly answer the questions.

Also Read: Matching Heading Type of Questions in IELTS Reading: Here’s How to do It

IELTS General Reading Section

The IELTS general training exam themes, on the other hand, are more directly connected to current events and workplace-related topics. This is largely due to the IELTS general preparation course, which is designed for those looking for jobs in English-speaking nations. The following are the sources of the general training reading topics for IELTS:

# Books

# Magazines

# Notices

# Announcements

# Advertising

# Handbooks from the company

# Guidelines from the company

# HR tactics

Different Questions Asked in IELTS Exam Reading Section

Multiple-Choice Questions

These are questions in which you must pick the proper answer from a list of options in ABC. This type of inquiry assesses your ability to comprehend detailed information written in capital letters.

Sentence Completion Questions

You will get an incomplete sentence in this section. You must fill in the blanks with terms from the text. As a result, you must rapidly transfer the incomplete text to a precise point in the text in order to get the proper answer.

Matching Sentence Endings

This is a straightforward question. A line in the text is used to pick a portion of a sentence. All you have to do now is locate the sentence from which it was derived and finish it, and you’ll have the right answer!

Short Answer Questions

You must be extremely cautious here! This is a question that asks you to reply to the question in the text using the information provided. You must also verify the number of words because you are restricted. There is always a limit to the number of words that may be used.

Flow Chart Completion Questions

In this type of query, you’ll get a table of data with some gaps in it. You must complete the blank with acceptable responses from the supplied reading text. A flowchart may also be found, with the same method for completing the chart as the table.

Information Identifying Questions

These are the kinds of questions that allow you to determine if the information provided is genuine or incorrect. This type of question assesses your ability to comprehend the content of the text.

Conclusion

You have read a passage from a past IELTS exam paper in this article. By going through the sample offered in this post, you will be able to learn how to solve the reading problems. You can learn how to solve the problems by following the reading answers. To get a strong band score on the reading exam, you must have good thinking skills as well as good speed reading skills. Before taking the main test, practise with a large number of examples.

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Also Read : Not Sure How to Study for IELTS? Checkout These Highest-Rated Platforms to Get your Hands-on!