It is a well-known fact that there are constant conflicts among different groups of people, and that people tend to blame their

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问题     It is a well-known fact that there are constant conflicts among different groups of people, and that people tend to blame their misfortunes on some outside other groups for their misfortunes. What are the causes of group prejudice? There seems to be little doubt that one of the principal causes of prejudice is fear: in particular the fear that the interests of our own group are going to be endangered by the actions of another. This is less likely to be the case in a stable, relatively unchanging society in which the members of different social and occupational groups know what to expect of each other, and know what to expect for themselves. In times of rapid social and economic change, however, new occupations and new social roles appear, and people start looking jealously at each other to see whether their own group is being left behind.
    Once prejudice develops, it is hard to stop, because there are often social forces at work which actively encourage unfounded attitudes of hostility and fear towards other groups. One such force is education: we all know that children can be taught history in such a way as to perpetuate old hatreds and old prejudices between racial and political groups. Another social influence that has to be reckoned with is the pressure of public opinion. People often think and act differently in groups from the way that they would do as individuals; it takes a considerable effort of will, and often calls for great courage, to stand out against one’s fellows and insist they are wrong.
    Why is it that we hear so much more about the failures of relationships between communities than we do about the successes? I am afraid it is partly due to the increase in communications which radio, television and the popular press have brought about. In those countries where the media of mass communication are commercial enterprises, they tend to measure success by the size of their audience; and people are more likely to buy a newspaper, for instance, if their attention is caught by something dramatic, something sensational, or something that arouses their anxiety. The popular press flourishes on "scare headlines", and popular orators, especially if they are politicians addressing a relatively unsophisticated audience, know that the best way to arouse such an audience is to frighten them.
    Where there is a real or imaginary threat to economic security, this is especially likely to inflame group prejudice. It is important to remember economic factors if we wish to lessen group prejudice, because unless they are dealt with squarely it will be little use simply persuading people not to be prejudiced against other groups whom they see as their rivals, if not their enemies.
The author stresses in the passage that if prejudice between groups is to be reduced,

选项 A、efforts should be made to persuade people not to be prejudiced against each other.
B、education should be carried out to enhance the mutual understanding between racial and political groups.
C、economic security should be maintained so that there will no fear that the interests of one group are going to be endangered by the actions of another.
D、public opinion should be directed to the elimination of old hatreds and old prejudices between racial and political groups.

答案C

解析 细节题。文章最后一段指出,如果经济的安全存在真正或可想象的威胁,那么就极有可能引发群体偏见;如果我们希望减少群体之间的偏见,那么记住经济因素就很重要,因为,如果这些群体没有受到公正的对待,那么仅仅劝告人们不要对其他群体存有偏见的做法将没有丝毫用处——因为人们如果不是把其他群体看成是敌人,就是把他们看成是竞争对手。这说明,经济的安全没有威胁的话,就可能减少群体之间的偏见。这与C项的意思相符。A明显与文章的意思不符;实施教育是引发群体偏见的做法,所以B不对;公众舆论也是引发群体偏见的做法,所以D也不对。  
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