Analyse the following passage and provide appropriate answers "Whatever…
2025
Analyse the following passage and provide appropriate answers "Whatever actions are done by an individual in different embodiments, [s]he reaps the fruit of those actions in those very bodies or embodiments (in future existences)".
A belief in karma entails, among other things, a focus on long run consequences, i.e., a long term orientation. Such an orientation implies that people who believe in karma may be more honest with themselves in general and in setting expectations in particular-a hypothesis we examine here. This research is based on three simple premises. First, because lower expectations often lead to greater satisfaction, individuals in general, and especially those who are sensitive to the gap between performance and expectations, have the incentive to and actually do “strategically” lower their expectations. Second, individuals with a long term orientation are likely to be less inclined to lower expectations in the hope of temporarily feeling better. Third, long term orientation and the tendency to lower expectations are at least partially driven by cultural factors. In India, belief in karma, with its emphasis on a longer term orientation, will therefore to some extent counter-act the tendency to lower expectations. The empirical results support our logic; those who believe more strongly in karma are less influenced by disconfirmation sensitivity and therefore have higher expectations.
Consumers make choices based on expectations of how alternative options will perform (i.e., expected utility). Expectations about the quality of a product also play a central role in subsequent satisfaction. These expectations may be based on a number of factors including the quality of a typical brand in a category, advertised quality, and disconfirmation sensitivity. Recent evidence suggests that consumers, who are more disconfirmation sensitive (i.e., consumers who are more satisfied when products perform better than expected or more dissatisfied when products perform worse than expected) have lower expectations. However, there is little research concerning the role of culture-specific variables in expectation formation, particularly how they relate to the impact of disconfirmation sensitivity on consumer expectations.
Which of the following statements, if true, would contradict the first of the three premises mentioned in the first paragraph?
- A.
Higher satisfaction leads to lower expectation.
- B.
Lower expectation leads to long term consequences
- C.
Satisfaction depends on achievement and not on expectation
- D.
Karma affects our immediate feelings
Attempted by 1 students.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C
Concept: In this type of question, a statement “contradicts” a given premise only when it directly negates the specific relationship the premise asserts — reversing the causal direction, addressing an unrelated aspect, or discussing a different premise does not count as a contradiction. To answer, first isolate exactly what relationship the target premise claims between its two variables, then look for the option that outright denies that particular link.
Application:
The first premise states that lower expectations often lead to greater satisfaction — in other words, satisfaction level is described as depending on the level of expectation. The statement that satisfaction depends on achievement and not on expectation flatly denies this dependency: if satisfaction were governed purely by achievement, with expectation playing no role, the premise's own claim that lowering expectations increases satisfaction could never hold. That is a direct logical negation of the premise, so it is the option that would contradict it.
Cross-check:
Checking the remaining options confirms none of them contradicts this specific premise:
Higher satisfaction leads to lower expectation — this only reverses the direction of the relationship (satisfaction affecting expectation rather than expectation affecting satisfaction); it does not deny that lower expectations raise satisfaction, so it is not a contradiction.
Lower expectation leads to long term consequences — this concerns long-term orientation, which relates to the second and third premises about cultural and temporal factors, not the expectation-satisfaction link in the first premise.
Karma affects our immediate feelings — this addresses karma's link to immediate feelings, a topic separate from the expectation-satisfaction relationship the first premise describes, so it does not contradict that premise; it is simply unrelated to it.
Hence, the statement that satisfaction depends on achievement and not on expectation is the one that would contradict the first premise.