Question 85·Easy·Cross-Text Connections
Text 1
In a recent report, economist Liying Chen concludes that expanding remote-work policies would yield widespread gains. After surveying 500 companies, Chen’s team determined that employees who worked from home three or more days per week logged, on average, 9% higher output than their in-office counterparts. The report also notes substantial secondary benefits: a drop in commuter traffic, lower office energy use, and a measurable reduction in greenhouse-gas emissions. Chen argues that these findings present “a compelling case” for businesses to adopt remote work as a standard practice.
Text 2
Chen’s data on productivity and environmental impact are encouraging, but they do not address the potential costs of large-scale remote work. A separate survey by career-development nonprofit PathForward suggests that employees who rarely visit the office are more likely to feel socially isolated and perceive fewer advancement opportunities. Before celebrating remote work as a universal solution, organizations should consider hybrid models that preserve the flexibility Chen praises while mitigating social and professional drawbacks.
Which choice best describes a difference in how the author of Text 1 and the author of Text 2 view Chen’s report?
For cross-text “difference in view” questions, first summarize each author’s stance in a few words (for example, “strongly positive,” “mixed but cautious,” or “critical”). Then go to the choices and check both halves of each option against the passages: eliminate any choice where even one half adds information that is not stated (like specific causes, comparisons, or groups not mentioned). The correct answer will accurately capture each author’s attitude and will not introduce new claims beyond what you can directly point to in the texts.
Hints
Pin down Text 1’s attitude
Look for phrases in Text 1 that show how positively or negatively the author views Chen’s findings (for example, words around “gains” and “a compelling case”).
Pin down Text 2’s attitude
In Text 2, pay attention to the sentence with “encouraging, but…” and the final recommendation about “universal solution” versus “hybrid models.” Does this sound fully supportive, fully critical, or mixed?
Eliminate choices that add new claims
Check each answer choice for claims that are not mentioned in either text (like specifics about company size or arguing over which kind of benefit is more important). Remove any choice that introduces ideas the texts never discuss.
Step-by-step Explanation
Understand the author’s view in Text 1
Focus on how Text 1 describes Chen’s report and recommendations.
- The report “concludes that expanding remote-work policies would yield widespread gains.”
- It reports higher productivity: “9% higher output” for remote workers.
- It lists several “substantial secondary benefits”: less commuter traffic, lower energy use, fewer emissions.
- Chen calls the findings “a compelling case” for businesses “to adopt remote work as a standard practice.”
These phrases show that Text 1 presents Chen’s report as strong, positive support for broad adoption of remote work.
Understand the author’s view in Text 2
Now see how Text 2 reacts to Chen’s findings.
- It starts: “Chen’s data on productivity and environmental impact are encouraging, but they do not address the potential costs of large-scale remote work.” This both acknowledges benefits and introduces a concern.
- It cites another survey showing remote workers “are more likely to feel socially isolated and perceive fewer advancement opportunities.” These are downsides not covered in Chen’s report.
- It concludes: “Before celebrating remote work as a universal solution, organizations should consider hybrid models… while mitigating social and professional drawbacks.”
So Text 2 accepts Chen’s positive findings but mainly warns against treating remote work as an uncomplicated, universal solution, and suggests a hybrid approach.
Match both views to the answer choices
Use what you learned to test each choice:
- Choice B claims Text 2 attacks the reliability of Chen’s data and Text 1 defends the methods. Text 2 never says the data are unreliable; it says they don’t cover all the costs, which is different from bad data.
- Choice C says the texts argue about whether environmental benefits or productivity gains matter more. Neither text compares those two types of benefits against each other.
- Choice D talks about small versus large companies. Neither text mentions company size at all.
- Choice A says Text 2 acknowledges the report’s benefits but mainly warns about overlooked downsides, while Text 1 uses the findings as a strong endorsement of widespread remote work. This exactly matches the positive, promotional tone of Text 1 and the mixed, cautious tone of Text 2.
Therefore, the correct answer is A) The author of Text 2 acknowledges the report’s benefits but primarily cautions against overlooking possible downsides, whereas the author of Text 1 presents the report’s findings as a strong endorsement of widespread remote work.