The psychology of innovation: reading answers and analysis
Psychologist Robert Cialdini explains why some companies innovate and others don't. Values fit, framing change as a possible loss, teamwork and peer support, writing ideas down and leaders who invite every contribution all help. Overbearing bosses, by contrast, make teams passive, as the Memphis design group's no-rules approach shows from the other side.
The multiple choice (27-30) follows the examples in order: the Sun Studios photo, Watson and Crick, cereal competitions and the final paragraph. The sentence endings (31-35) run through paragraphs 2, 4, 9 and 10. YES / NO / NOT GIVEN (36-40) starts again at the top.
Answer key and self-check
Type what you wrote and hit mark. Hide the key first if you haven't done the passage yet. Every question number jumps to its explanation.
How to attack this block: Each question asks what an example proves, so read the sentence before or after the story to find the writer's point. The quartet backs up the values-fit idea, Watson admits his limits, and the cereal entries show that writing builds belief. Distractors pick up true details that aren't the point.
Question 27
Answer: CParagraph 3, last three sentences
What point does the story of the Sun Studios 'million-dollar quartet' support?
Presley, Cash, Perkins and Lewis instinctively understood Phillips's ambition and believed in it. Orbison wasn't inspired by the goal, and only ever achieved one hit with the Sun label.
Question says → Passage says
a shared objectiveunderstood Phillips's ambition and believed in it
objectivethe goal
Why: The photo backs up Cialdini's point about values fit from the paragraph before. The four in the picture shared Phillips's goal; Orbison, who didn't, had little success at Sun. That's C, a shared objective.
The trap: A (recognising talent) tempts because Orbison was the best natural singer. But the story shows talent wasn't enough: without the shared goal he didn't fit.
Question 28
Answer: AParagraph 6, second half
Why does Watson think he and Crick beat their rivals to the structure of DNA?
He said he and Crick had succeeded because they were aware that they weren't the most intelligent of the scientists pursuing the answer.
Question says → Passage says
conscious ofaware that
their own limitationsthey weren't the most intelligent
Why: Knowing you're not the cleverest person in the race is being conscious of your limitations. Franklin, the smartest, rarely asked for advice, which is the contrast Watson draws. A.
The trap: C sounds right because their rivals were brighter, but Watson says nothing about being determined to beat them. B and D (complementary skills, encouraging each other) are reasonable guesses about a partnership, but neither is stated.
Question 29
Answer: DParagraph 8
What do the cereal-packet competitions show?
even something as simple as writing deepens every individual's engagement in the project… The very act of writing makes us more likely to believe it.
Question says → Passage says
strengthen commitmentdeepens every individual's engagement
to an ideamore likely to believe it
Why: The point of writing 'I like Kellogg's Corn Flakes because…' is that writing it makes you believe it more. Deeper engagement and stronger belief mean stronger commitment to an idea: D.
The trap: B tempts because the entries had to be 10 words or fewer, but the word limit is a detail of the competition, not the lesson. A echoes the paragraph's first sentence about new ideas, but the cereal example is about belief, not creativity.
Question 30
Answer: BLast paragraph, second sentence
In the last paragraph, what does the writer suggest matters for employees?
assure all concerned that every recommendation is important to making the right decision and will be given full attention
Question says → Passage says
their contributionsevery recommendation
are valuedis important to making the right decision and will be given full attention
Why: Leaders should tell everyone that each suggestion matters and will be properly considered. That is making staff feel their contributions are valued: B.
The trap: C borrows 'collective accomplishment' from the first sentence, but that's the boss taking pride in the team, not staff respecting co-workers. A and D (company goals, explaining decisions) aren't in the paragraph.
Sentence endings (A-G)
Questions 31-35
How to attack this block: Two endings are opposites (take chances, avoid risk), and both are in paragraph 4: change makes us play safe, but fear of loss makes us gamble. The others match a single phrase each: still at the company, opting out of responsibilities, and a free interchange of ideas.
Question 31
Answer: GParagraph 2, second sentence
What are employees whose values match their employer's more likely to do?
the fit between an employee's values and a company's values makes a difference to what contribution they make and whether, two years after they join, they're still at the company
Question says → Passage says
values match those of their employersthe fit between an employee's values and a company's values
remain in their jobsthey're still at the company
Why: Values fit affects whether people are still there two years later. Still being at the company is remaining in the job: G.
The trap: D (get promotion) feels like a natural reward for a good fit, but the passage talks about staying, not moving up.
Question 32
Answer: EParagraph 4, first sentence
How do people tend to behave when things change?
When things change, we are hard-wired to play it safe.
Question says → Passage says
At times of changeWhen things change
tend toare hard-wired to
avoid riskplay it safe
Why: 'Play it safe' means avoid risk, and 'hard-wired' means it's our natural tendency. E.
The trap: A (take chances) is the opposite, and it belongs to the next sentence beginning, about people facing a loss. Don't mix the two.
Question 33
Answer: AParagraph 4, last two sentences
What will people often do if they know what they could lose?
Studies show that we invariably take more gambles when threatened with a loss than when offered a reward.
Question says → Passage says
aware of what they might loseexplain what stands to be lost / threatened with a loss
take chancestake more gambles
Why: 'Gambles' are chances. When people are told what they stand to lose, they gamble more, which is why Cialdini's advice seems counter-intuitive. A.
The trap: E (avoid risk) is in the same paragraph, but it describes change in general. The loss framing flips that behaviour.
Question 34
Answer: FParagraph 9
What are people with an overbearing boss likely to do?
the regrettable tendency of team members to opt out of team responsibilities that are properly theirs
Question says → Passage says
ignore their dutiesopt out of team responsibilities that are properly theirs
a dominant bossthe leader is overbearing / the wrong kind of leadership
Why: 'Captainitis' is team members dropping responsibilities that belong to them, and the paragraph ends by linking it to an overbearing leader. Opting out of responsibilities is ignoring duties: F.
The trap: E (avoid risk) can seem to fit the passive aircraft crews, but the passage's point is that they fail to do their job, not that they're being careful.
Question 35
Answer: BParagraph 10
What are people in organisations with few rules more likely to do?
the only rule was that there were no rules'. This environment encouraged a free interchange of ideas
Question says → Passage says
organisations with few rulesthe only rule was that there were no rules
share their ideasa free interchange of ideas
Why: The Memphis design group had no rules, and that environment encouraged a free exchange of ideas. Exchanging ideas is sharing them: B.
The trap: C (become competitive) might sound like what happens without rules, but the passage describes cooperation and creativity, not rivalry.
YES / NO / NOT GIVEN
Questions 36-40
How to attack this block: The two NOs both reverse a clear claim: surroundings don't decide creativity, and peers persuade better than bosses. The two NOT GIVENs invent comparisons the writer never makes, about equal intelligence and company size.
Question 36
Answer: NOParagraph 1, second and third sentences
Does the writer think your physical workplace largely decides how creative you are?
people working in luxurious, state-of-the-art centres designed to stimulate innovation who find that their environment doesn't make them feel at all creative
Question says → Passage says
the physical surroundingsluxurious, state-of-the-art centres / their environment
play a key role in determining their creativitydoesn't make them feel at all creative
Why: The writer gives examples both ways: fancy centres where people don't feel creative, and people with no budget or space who innovate well. Surroundings aren't the key factor, so NO.
The trap: Companies do spend heavily on inspiring environments, which can make YES look reasonable. The writer mentions that spending only to show it often doesn't work.
Question 37
Answer: YESParagraph 2, last sentence
Can most people be creative?
although some individuals may be more creative than others, almost every individual can be creative in the right circumstances
Question says → Passage says
most peoplealmost every individual
have the potential to be creativecan be creative in the right circumstances
Why: 'Almost every individual' is 'most people', and 'can be… in the right circumstances' is having the potential. YES.
The trap: The first half says some people are more creative than others. That doesn't cancel the statement, because it's about potential, not equal ability.
Question 38
Answer: NOT GIVENParagraph 6
Do teams work best when members are equally intelligent?
three people will be better than one at solving problems, even if that one person is the smartest person in the field
Question says → Passage says
teams work bestthree people will be better than one at solving problems
Why: The writer says groups beat individuals, even very clever ones. Nothing compares teams of equal intelligence with mixed teams, so NOT GIVEN.
The trap: Watson and Crick knew they weren't the smartest, which can feel like a comment on matching abilities. It's about humility, not about team members being equal.
Question 39
Answer: NOT GIVENParagraph 1 and Paragraph 5
Is innovation easier for smaller companies?
And there are those who don't have a budget, or much space, but who innovate successfully.
Question says → Passage says
innovativeinnovate successfully
Why: The passage says people without money or space can still innovate, but it never compares small and large companies. NOT GIVEN.
The trap: 'Small pockets of innovation' in paragraph 5 sounds like small firms, but it means small groups inside one company that can get lost.
Question 40
Answer: NOParagraph 7, last sentence
Is a manager's backing more convincing than a colleague's?
Research shows that peer power, used horizontally not vertically, is much more powerful than any boss's speech.
Question says → Passage says
that of a colleaguepeer power / ask another old-timer to speak up for it
a manager's approvalany boss's speech
Why: The writer says the opposite: a peer's support is much more powerful than anything a boss says. That contradicts the statement, so NO.
The trap: Some readers expect authority to win and pick NOT GIVEN when they can't find the comparison. It's there, in the last line of paragraph 7.
NOT GIVEN. People with no budget or space can innovate, but the writer never says small companies find it easier.
Words from this passage worth keeping
state-of-the-art(Paragraph 1)
using the newest and most advanced ideas or equipment
counter-intuitive(Paragraph 4)
the opposite of what you would naturally expect
hard-wired(Paragraph 4)
naturally built in, not learned
invariably(Paragraph 4)
always, every time
pervasive(Paragraph 7)
spread everywhere and hard to avoid
inhibit(Paragraph 9)
hold back or prevent something
overbearing(Paragraph 9)
too controlling and forceful
opt out of(Paragraph 9)
choose not to take part in
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The full Cambridge 10 Test 1 reading paper: all three passages, 60 minutes, marked the second you finish with a review of every answer. Already done it? Take it again and see if the same traps still get you.
Cambridge IELTS 10, Test 1, Reading Passage 3. The passage and questions belong to Cambridge University Press and are not reproduced here. We quote short extracts only as evidence for our own commentary, and the answers are published for self-marking. Get the book for the full text, or sit the test on Langujet.
