XAT 2012: Previous Year Question Paper with Solutions

 Page 1


XAT 2012
Verbal Ability and Logical Reasoning
1. “On a wing and a prayer the Indian team landed in Heathrow to take on their formidable opponents”. From the above sentence
it can be inferred that the Indian team was
A    high in spirits
B    well prepared
C    over confident
D    under prepared
E    buoyant
A n s w e r : D
Explanation:
The phrase "On a wing and a prayer" means to do something without preparation and hoping to succeed. From the sentence it can be
inferred that the Indian team was under prepared and hoping to succeed.
Hence, the correct answer is Option D
  
2. It _____________ not look like a great deal today, but back then it was a coup: no man before ___________ to import tea directly
into Ireland. The option that will best fill the blanks in the
above sentences would be:
A    may, has dared
B    may, had dared
C    might, have dared
D    might, have ever dared
E    may, ever dared
A n s w e r : B
Explanation:
From the narrative, it is clear that the act of importing tea into Ireland is an event of the past and that perhaps doing so today is not a
"big deal". This means that the act of importing tea should be spoken of in the past perfect tense as we are referring to a past event (of
importing tea directly) when standing at a point which itself is a point of past from today's perspective (the point when it was
considered a coup). Hence, "had dared" is the most apt for the second blank and hence, B should be the answer.
The sequence of events has to be understood like this: daring to import tea ---> being considered as a coup ----> not a big deal today. 
3. “It was AC Milan’s success in Europe in the sixties that introduced the ‘libero’ as the Italian default and, a quarter of a century
later, it was AC Milan’s success in Europe that killed it off.” Which of the following was not implied in the above sentence?
A    AC Milan was successful in Europe in the sixties with the help of a ‘libero’
B    AC Milan was successful in Europe in the late eighties without a ‘libero’
C    The ‘libero’ was an Italian default for almost a quarter of a century.
  
.
Page 2


XAT 2012
Verbal Ability and Logical Reasoning
1. “On a wing and a prayer the Indian team landed in Heathrow to take on their formidable opponents”. From the above sentence
it can be inferred that the Indian team was
A    high in spirits
B    well prepared
C    over confident
D    under prepared
E    buoyant
A n s w e r : D
Explanation:
The phrase "On a wing and a prayer" means to do something without preparation and hoping to succeed. From the sentence it can be
inferred that the Indian team was under prepared and hoping to succeed.
Hence, the correct answer is Option D
  
2. It _____________ not look like a great deal today, but back then it was a coup: no man before ___________ to import tea directly
into Ireland. The option that will best fill the blanks in the
above sentences would be:
A    may, has dared
B    may, had dared
C    might, have dared
D    might, have ever dared
E    may, ever dared
A n s w e r : B
Explanation:
From the narrative, it is clear that the act of importing tea into Ireland is an event of the past and that perhaps doing so today is not a
"big deal". This means that the act of importing tea should be spoken of in the past perfect tense as we are referring to a past event (of
importing tea directly) when standing at a point which itself is a point of past from today's perspective (the point when it was
considered a coup). Hence, "had dared" is the most apt for the second blank and hence, B should be the answer.
The sequence of events has to be understood like this: daring to import tea ---> being considered as a coup ----> not a big deal today. 
3. “It was AC Milan’s success in Europe in the sixties that introduced the ‘libero’ as the Italian default and, a quarter of a century
later, it was AC Milan’s success in Europe that killed it off.” Which of the following was not implied in the above sentence?
A    AC Milan was successful in Europe in the sixties with the help of a ‘libero’
B    AC Milan was successful in Europe in the late eighties without a ‘libero’
C    The ‘libero’ was an Italian default for almost a quarter of a century.
  
.
D    
AC Milan was not successful in Europe for almost a quarter of a century.
E    
The Italians seldom used a ‘libero’ since late eighties.
A n s w e r : D
Explanation:
The given sentence implies that 'libero' was introduced as the Italian default due to Milan's success and it was killed a century later due
to their success.
Option D implies the opposite of what has been mentioned in the given sentence. All other option can be implied.
Hence, option D is the correct answer.
4. Choose the odd one:
A    Chaos / Order
B    Fact / Fiction
C    Virtue / Vice
D    Study / Analyse
E    Light / Darkness
A n s w e r : D
Explanation:
Antonym of Chaos is Order.
Antonym of Fact is Fiction.
Antonym of Virtue is Vice.
Antonym of Light is Darkness.
Synonym of Study is Analyse.
All pairs other than D are antonyms of each other. 
Option D is the odd one out because study and analyse are synonyms of each other. 
         
5. The 2001 census showed a sharp fall in the litreacy rate compared to 1991, but an increase in the litreacy rate by 2006
suggests that between 1991 and 2006 India progressed in terms of litreacy rate.
Which of the following statements, if true, best refutes the above argument?
A    One of the causes of more litreacy is the increased population growth rate.
B    Although there was no census in 2006 the information about the litreacy rate is reliable.
C    Many of those who were illitreate in 2001 become litreate by 2006.
D    
The rate of fall in litreacy rate between 1991 and 2001 was more than the rate of rise in litreacy rate between
2001 and 2006.
E    The rise in litreacy rate between 2001 and 2006 was due to persistent campaign on television and FM radio.
A n s w e r : D
Explanation:
The argument is that India made up for the loss incurred in literacy rate from 1991 to 2001 by improving in the 5 year span from 2001 to
2006. 
This can be refuted if it can be proven that the progress made in 2001 to 2006 was not good enough in amount to cover the losses
incurred in the previous 10 year period. So even if India improved in 2001-06, the improvement might have been marginal and hardly
  
.
Page 3


XAT 2012
Verbal Ability and Logical Reasoning
1. “On a wing and a prayer the Indian team landed in Heathrow to take on their formidable opponents”. From the above sentence
it can be inferred that the Indian team was
A    high in spirits
B    well prepared
C    over confident
D    under prepared
E    buoyant
A n s w e r : D
Explanation:
The phrase "On a wing and a prayer" means to do something without preparation and hoping to succeed. From the sentence it can be
inferred that the Indian team was under prepared and hoping to succeed.
Hence, the correct answer is Option D
  
2. It _____________ not look like a great deal today, but back then it was a coup: no man before ___________ to import tea directly
into Ireland. The option that will best fill the blanks in the
above sentences would be:
A    may, has dared
B    may, had dared
C    might, have dared
D    might, have ever dared
E    may, ever dared
A n s w e r : B
Explanation:
From the narrative, it is clear that the act of importing tea into Ireland is an event of the past and that perhaps doing so today is not a
"big deal". This means that the act of importing tea should be spoken of in the past perfect tense as we are referring to a past event (of
importing tea directly) when standing at a point which itself is a point of past from today's perspective (the point when it was
considered a coup). Hence, "had dared" is the most apt for the second blank and hence, B should be the answer.
The sequence of events has to be understood like this: daring to import tea ---> being considered as a coup ----> not a big deal today. 
3. “It was AC Milan’s success in Europe in the sixties that introduced the ‘libero’ as the Italian default and, a quarter of a century
later, it was AC Milan’s success in Europe that killed it off.” Which of the following was not implied in the above sentence?
A    AC Milan was successful in Europe in the sixties with the help of a ‘libero’
B    AC Milan was successful in Europe in the late eighties without a ‘libero’
C    The ‘libero’ was an Italian default for almost a quarter of a century.
  
.
D    
AC Milan was not successful in Europe for almost a quarter of a century.
E    
The Italians seldom used a ‘libero’ since late eighties.
A n s w e r : D
Explanation:
The given sentence implies that 'libero' was introduced as the Italian default due to Milan's success and it was killed a century later due
to their success.
Option D implies the opposite of what has been mentioned in the given sentence. All other option can be implied.
Hence, option D is the correct answer.
4. Choose the odd one:
A    Chaos / Order
B    Fact / Fiction
C    Virtue / Vice
D    Study / Analyse
E    Light / Darkness
A n s w e r : D
Explanation:
Antonym of Chaos is Order.
Antonym of Fact is Fiction.
Antonym of Virtue is Vice.
Antonym of Light is Darkness.
Synonym of Study is Analyse.
All pairs other than D are antonyms of each other. 
Option D is the odd one out because study and analyse are synonyms of each other. 
         
5. The 2001 census showed a sharp fall in the litreacy rate compared to 1991, but an increase in the litreacy rate by 2006
suggests that between 1991 and 2006 India progressed in terms of litreacy rate.
Which of the following statements, if true, best refutes the above argument?
A    One of the causes of more litreacy is the increased population growth rate.
B    Although there was no census in 2006 the information about the litreacy rate is reliable.
C    Many of those who were illitreate in 2001 become litreate by 2006.
D    
The rate of fall in litreacy rate between 1991 and 2001 was more than the rate of rise in litreacy rate between
2001 and 2006.
E    The rise in litreacy rate between 2001 and 2006 was due to persistent campaign on television and FM radio.
A n s w e r : D
Explanation:
The argument is that India made up for the loss incurred in literacy rate from 1991 to 2001 by improving in the 5 year span from 2001 to
2006. 
This can be refuted if it can be proven that the progress made in 2001 to 2006 was not good enough in amount to cover the losses
incurred in the previous 10 year period. So even if India improved in 2001-06, the improvement might have been marginal and hardly
  
.
substantial.
This is given to us by option D. Hence, the answer. 
6. Ravindra Dubey was guilty of embezzlement. It means that Ravindra Dubey
A    did not pay his bills.
B    misappropriated assets he was entrusted with.
C    engaged in circulating black money in the economy.
D    cheated on his spouse.
E    misreported educational qualification.
A n s w e r : B
Explanation:
'Embezzlement' means theft or misappropriation of funds placed in one's trust or belonging to one's employer. Option B represents the
most appropriate meaning of the given sentence.
Hence, option B is the correct answer.
7. Read the sentences and choose the option that best arrange them in a logical order.
A. Some of these are tangible while others are not.
B. The micro factors look at brand building, product development, competition, pricing, decision making within organizations
etc.
C. Another way to classify these factors is to distinguish which of them are macro in nature and which of them are micro.
D. The macro factors comprise government policies, state of the economy, changing demographics etc.
E.The factors influencing forecasts include social, technological, economic, political, religious, ethnic, governmental, and
natural factors.
A    E-A-C-D-B
B    E-C-B-D-A
C    A-E-C-D-B
D    D-B-A-C-E
E    E-D-B-A-C
A n s w e r : A
Explanation:
From the given sentence, we can infer easily that sentence C precedes sentences D and B. We place sentence D and then B because
sentence C mentions macro factors first and then micro ones. Hence, C-D-B is a mandatory sequence. 
This is available only in options A and C.
Obviously, the sequence cannot start with sentence A and hence, the sequence E-A-C-D-B has to be the answer.
        
Instructions [8 - 12 ]
Read the following passage and provide appropriate answers for the questions
There is an essential and irreducible ‘duality’ in the normative conceptualization of an individual person. We can see the person in
terms of his or her ‘agency’, recognizing and respecting his or her ability to form goals, commitments, values, etc., and we can also see
the person in terms of his or her ‘well-being’. This dichotomy is lost in a model of exclusively self- interested motivation, in which a
person’s agency must be entirely geared to his or her own well-being. But once that straitjacket of self-interested motivation is
removed, it becomes possible to recognize the indisputable fact that the person’s agency can well be geared to considerations not
covered - or at least not fully covered - by his or her own well-being. Agency may be seen as important (not just instrumentally for the
  
.
Page 4


XAT 2012
Verbal Ability and Logical Reasoning
1. “On a wing and a prayer the Indian team landed in Heathrow to take on their formidable opponents”. From the above sentence
it can be inferred that the Indian team was
A    high in spirits
B    well prepared
C    over confident
D    under prepared
E    buoyant
A n s w e r : D
Explanation:
The phrase "On a wing and a prayer" means to do something without preparation and hoping to succeed. From the sentence it can be
inferred that the Indian team was under prepared and hoping to succeed.
Hence, the correct answer is Option D
  
2. It _____________ not look like a great deal today, but back then it was a coup: no man before ___________ to import tea directly
into Ireland. The option that will best fill the blanks in the
above sentences would be:
A    may, has dared
B    may, had dared
C    might, have dared
D    might, have ever dared
E    may, ever dared
A n s w e r : B
Explanation:
From the narrative, it is clear that the act of importing tea into Ireland is an event of the past and that perhaps doing so today is not a
"big deal". This means that the act of importing tea should be spoken of in the past perfect tense as we are referring to a past event (of
importing tea directly) when standing at a point which itself is a point of past from today's perspective (the point when it was
considered a coup). Hence, "had dared" is the most apt for the second blank and hence, B should be the answer.
The sequence of events has to be understood like this: daring to import tea ---> being considered as a coup ----> not a big deal today. 
3. “It was AC Milan’s success in Europe in the sixties that introduced the ‘libero’ as the Italian default and, a quarter of a century
later, it was AC Milan’s success in Europe that killed it off.” Which of the following was not implied in the above sentence?
A    AC Milan was successful in Europe in the sixties with the help of a ‘libero’
B    AC Milan was successful in Europe in the late eighties without a ‘libero’
C    The ‘libero’ was an Italian default for almost a quarter of a century.
  
.
D    
AC Milan was not successful in Europe for almost a quarter of a century.
E    
The Italians seldom used a ‘libero’ since late eighties.
A n s w e r : D
Explanation:
The given sentence implies that 'libero' was introduced as the Italian default due to Milan's success and it was killed a century later due
to their success.
Option D implies the opposite of what has been mentioned in the given sentence. All other option can be implied.
Hence, option D is the correct answer.
4. Choose the odd one:
A    Chaos / Order
B    Fact / Fiction
C    Virtue / Vice
D    Study / Analyse
E    Light / Darkness
A n s w e r : D
Explanation:
Antonym of Chaos is Order.
Antonym of Fact is Fiction.
Antonym of Virtue is Vice.
Antonym of Light is Darkness.
Synonym of Study is Analyse.
All pairs other than D are antonyms of each other. 
Option D is the odd one out because study and analyse are synonyms of each other. 
         
5. The 2001 census showed a sharp fall in the litreacy rate compared to 1991, but an increase in the litreacy rate by 2006
suggests that between 1991 and 2006 India progressed in terms of litreacy rate.
Which of the following statements, if true, best refutes the above argument?
A    One of the causes of more litreacy is the increased population growth rate.
B    Although there was no census in 2006 the information about the litreacy rate is reliable.
C    Many of those who were illitreate in 2001 become litreate by 2006.
D    
The rate of fall in litreacy rate between 1991 and 2001 was more than the rate of rise in litreacy rate between
2001 and 2006.
E    The rise in litreacy rate between 2001 and 2006 was due to persistent campaign on television and FM radio.
A n s w e r : D
Explanation:
The argument is that India made up for the loss incurred in literacy rate from 1991 to 2001 by improving in the 5 year span from 2001 to
2006. 
This can be refuted if it can be proven that the progress made in 2001 to 2006 was not good enough in amount to cover the losses
incurred in the previous 10 year period. So even if India improved in 2001-06, the improvement might have been marginal and hardly
  
.
substantial.
This is given to us by option D. Hence, the answer. 
6. Ravindra Dubey was guilty of embezzlement. It means that Ravindra Dubey
A    did not pay his bills.
B    misappropriated assets he was entrusted with.
C    engaged in circulating black money in the economy.
D    cheated on his spouse.
E    misreported educational qualification.
A n s w e r : B
Explanation:
'Embezzlement' means theft or misappropriation of funds placed in one's trust or belonging to one's employer. Option B represents the
most appropriate meaning of the given sentence.
Hence, option B is the correct answer.
7. Read the sentences and choose the option that best arrange them in a logical order.
A. Some of these are tangible while others are not.
B. The micro factors look at brand building, product development, competition, pricing, decision making within organizations
etc.
C. Another way to classify these factors is to distinguish which of them are macro in nature and which of them are micro.
D. The macro factors comprise government policies, state of the economy, changing demographics etc.
E.The factors influencing forecasts include social, technological, economic, political, religious, ethnic, governmental, and
natural factors.
A    E-A-C-D-B
B    E-C-B-D-A
C    A-E-C-D-B
D    D-B-A-C-E
E    E-D-B-A-C
A n s w e r : A
Explanation:
From the given sentence, we can infer easily that sentence C precedes sentences D and B. We place sentence D and then B because
sentence C mentions macro factors first and then micro ones. Hence, C-D-B is a mandatory sequence. 
This is available only in options A and C.
Obviously, the sequence cannot start with sentence A and hence, the sequence E-A-C-D-B has to be the answer.
        
Instructions [8 - 12 ]
Read the following passage and provide appropriate answers for the questions
There is an essential and irreducible ‘duality’ in the normative conceptualization of an individual person. We can see the person in
terms of his or her ‘agency’, recognizing and respecting his or her ability to form goals, commitments, values, etc., and we can also see
the person in terms of his or her ‘well-being’. This dichotomy is lost in a model of exclusively self- interested motivation, in which a
person’s agency must be entirely geared to his or her own well-being. But once that straitjacket of self-interested motivation is
removed, it becomes possible to recognize the indisputable fact that the person’s agency can well be geared to considerations not
covered - or at least not fully covered - by his or her own well-being. Agency may be seen as important (not just instrumentally for the
  
.
pursuit of well-being, but also intrinsically), but that still leaves open the question as to how that agency is to be evaluated and
appraised. Even though the use of one’s agency is a matter for oneself to judge, the need for careful assessment of aims, objective,
allegiances, etc., and the conception of the good, may be important and exacting. To recognize the distinction between the ‘agency
aspect’ and the ‘well-being aspect’ of a person does not require us to take the view that the person’s success as an agent must be
independent, or completely separable from, his or her success in terms of well-being. A person may well feel happier and better off as a
result of achieving what he or she wanted to achieve - perhaps for his or her family, or community, or class, or party, or some other
cause. Also it is quite possible that a person’s well-being will go down as a result of frustration if there is some failure to achieve what
he or she wanted to achieve as an agent, even though those achievements are not directly concerned with his or her well-being. There
is really no sound basis for demanding that the agency aspect and the well-being aspect of a person should be independent of each
other, and it is, I suppose, even possible that every change in one will affect the other as well. However, the point at issue is not the
plausibility of their independence, but the sustainability and relevance of the distinction. The fact that two variables may be so related
that one cannot change without the other, does not imply that they are the same variable, or that they will have the same values, or that
the value of one can be obtained from the other on basis of some simple transformation. The importance of an agency achievement
does not rest entirely on the enhancement of well-being that it may indirectly cause. The agency achievement and well-being
achievement, both of which have some distinct importance, may be casually linked with each other, but this fact does not compromise
the specific importance of either. In so far as utility - based welfare calculations concentrate only on the well- being of the person,
ignoring the agency aspect, or actually fails to distinguish between the agency aspect and well-being aspect altogether, something of
real importance is lost.
8. According to the ideas in the passage, the following are not true expect:
A    The value of a person’s well-being cannot be obtained from the value of her agency.
B    A person’s agency aspect is independent of her well-being aspect.
C    A person’s agency is important because her well-being must depend on her agency.
D    A person’s agency must be entirely geared towards her own well-being.
E    A person’s well-being will be dependent on her agency in all circumstances.
A n s w e r : A
Explanation:
Consider these sentences from the 4th line of given passage:
"This dichotomy is lost in a model of exclusively self- interested motivation, in which a person’s agency must be entirely geared to his or
her own well-being. But once that straitjacket of self-interested motivation is removed, it becomes possible to recognize the
indisputable fact that the person’s agency can well be geared to considerations not covered - or at least not fully covered - by his or her
own well-being."
They make it clear that the author believes it is incorrect to completely align a person's agency to his/her well being. It is very likely that
a person's agency might not be related completely with his/her idea of well being. 
This idea is reflected in option A. 
Option B is not true because it says that both the said issues are completely independent which is not the case. The author clearly
mentions that there can be a good correlation between the two but not always or in a complete sense. 
Hence, only A can be thought of as the true sentence. 
9. In the case of Japan, there is a strong empirical evidence to suggest that systematic departure
from self-interested behavior, in the direction of duty, loyalty and goodwill have played a substantial part in industrial
success.Which of the following in closest to the ideas presented in the passage?
A    Japanese are duty bound selfless people.
B    
The sense of well-being of the Japanese people gets consistently enhanced due to this systematic departure from
the self- interested behavior.
C    Had there been no enhancement of their own well-being, the Japanese people would have not been dutiful.
D    
Ability to achieve their country’s objectives may have enhanced the sense of well-being of Japanese people.
However the agency of the Japanese people in their industrial success is probably derived from factors beyond this
sense of well-being.
  
.
Page 5


XAT 2012
Verbal Ability and Logical Reasoning
1. “On a wing and a prayer the Indian team landed in Heathrow to take on their formidable opponents”. From the above sentence
it can be inferred that the Indian team was
A    high in spirits
B    well prepared
C    over confident
D    under prepared
E    buoyant
A n s w e r : D
Explanation:
The phrase "On a wing and a prayer" means to do something without preparation and hoping to succeed. From the sentence it can be
inferred that the Indian team was under prepared and hoping to succeed.
Hence, the correct answer is Option D
  
2. It _____________ not look like a great deal today, but back then it was a coup: no man before ___________ to import tea directly
into Ireland. The option that will best fill the blanks in the
above sentences would be:
A    may, has dared
B    may, had dared
C    might, have dared
D    might, have ever dared
E    may, ever dared
A n s w e r : B
Explanation:
From the narrative, it is clear that the act of importing tea into Ireland is an event of the past and that perhaps doing so today is not a
"big deal". This means that the act of importing tea should be spoken of in the past perfect tense as we are referring to a past event (of
importing tea directly) when standing at a point which itself is a point of past from today's perspective (the point when it was
considered a coup). Hence, "had dared" is the most apt for the second blank and hence, B should be the answer.
The sequence of events has to be understood like this: daring to import tea ---> being considered as a coup ----> not a big deal today. 
3. “It was AC Milan’s success in Europe in the sixties that introduced the ‘libero’ as the Italian default and, a quarter of a century
later, it was AC Milan’s success in Europe that killed it off.” Which of the following was not implied in the above sentence?
A    AC Milan was successful in Europe in the sixties with the help of a ‘libero’
B    AC Milan was successful in Europe in the late eighties without a ‘libero’
C    The ‘libero’ was an Italian default for almost a quarter of a century.
  
.
D    
AC Milan was not successful in Europe for almost a quarter of a century.
E    
The Italians seldom used a ‘libero’ since late eighties.
A n s w e r : D
Explanation:
The given sentence implies that 'libero' was introduced as the Italian default due to Milan's success and it was killed a century later due
to their success.
Option D implies the opposite of what has been mentioned in the given sentence. All other option can be implied.
Hence, option D is the correct answer.
4. Choose the odd one:
A    Chaos / Order
B    Fact / Fiction
C    Virtue / Vice
D    Study / Analyse
E    Light / Darkness
A n s w e r : D
Explanation:
Antonym of Chaos is Order.
Antonym of Fact is Fiction.
Antonym of Virtue is Vice.
Antonym of Light is Darkness.
Synonym of Study is Analyse.
All pairs other than D are antonyms of each other. 
Option D is the odd one out because study and analyse are synonyms of each other. 
         
5. The 2001 census showed a sharp fall in the litreacy rate compared to 1991, but an increase in the litreacy rate by 2006
suggests that between 1991 and 2006 India progressed in terms of litreacy rate.
Which of the following statements, if true, best refutes the above argument?
A    One of the causes of more litreacy is the increased population growth rate.
B    Although there was no census in 2006 the information about the litreacy rate is reliable.
C    Many of those who were illitreate in 2001 become litreate by 2006.
D    
The rate of fall in litreacy rate between 1991 and 2001 was more than the rate of rise in litreacy rate between
2001 and 2006.
E    The rise in litreacy rate between 2001 and 2006 was due to persistent campaign on television and FM radio.
A n s w e r : D
Explanation:
The argument is that India made up for the loss incurred in literacy rate from 1991 to 2001 by improving in the 5 year span from 2001 to
2006. 
This can be refuted if it can be proven that the progress made in 2001 to 2006 was not good enough in amount to cover the losses
incurred in the previous 10 year period. So even if India improved in 2001-06, the improvement might have been marginal and hardly
  
.
substantial.
This is given to us by option D. Hence, the answer. 
6. Ravindra Dubey was guilty of embezzlement. It means that Ravindra Dubey
A    did not pay his bills.
B    misappropriated assets he was entrusted with.
C    engaged in circulating black money in the economy.
D    cheated on his spouse.
E    misreported educational qualification.
A n s w e r : B
Explanation:
'Embezzlement' means theft or misappropriation of funds placed in one's trust or belonging to one's employer. Option B represents the
most appropriate meaning of the given sentence.
Hence, option B is the correct answer.
7. Read the sentences and choose the option that best arrange them in a logical order.
A. Some of these are tangible while others are not.
B. The micro factors look at brand building, product development, competition, pricing, decision making within organizations
etc.
C. Another way to classify these factors is to distinguish which of them are macro in nature and which of them are micro.
D. The macro factors comprise government policies, state of the economy, changing demographics etc.
E.The factors influencing forecasts include social, technological, economic, political, religious, ethnic, governmental, and
natural factors.
A    E-A-C-D-B
B    E-C-B-D-A
C    A-E-C-D-B
D    D-B-A-C-E
E    E-D-B-A-C
A n s w e r : A
Explanation:
From the given sentence, we can infer easily that sentence C precedes sentences D and B. We place sentence D and then B because
sentence C mentions macro factors first and then micro ones. Hence, C-D-B is a mandatory sequence. 
This is available only in options A and C.
Obviously, the sequence cannot start with sentence A and hence, the sequence E-A-C-D-B has to be the answer.
        
Instructions [8 - 12 ]
Read the following passage and provide appropriate answers for the questions
There is an essential and irreducible ‘duality’ in the normative conceptualization of an individual person. We can see the person in
terms of his or her ‘agency’, recognizing and respecting his or her ability to form goals, commitments, values, etc., and we can also see
the person in terms of his or her ‘well-being’. This dichotomy is lost in a model of exclusively self- interested motivation, in which a
person’s agency must be entirely geared to his or her own well-being. But once that straitjacket of self-interested motivation is
removed, it becomes possible to recognize the indisputable fact that the person’s agency can well be geared to considerations not
covered - or at least not fully covered - by his or her own well-being. Agency may be seen as important (not just instrumentally for the
  
.
pursuit of well-being, but also intrinsically), but that still leaves open the question as to how that agency is to be evaluated and
appraised. Even though the use of one’s agency is a matter for oneself to judge, the need for careful assessment of aims, objective,
allegiances, etc., and the conception of the good, may be important and exacting. To recognize the distinction between the ‘agency
aspect’ and the ‘well-being aspect’ of a person does not require us to take the view that the person’s success as an agent must be
independent, or completely separable from, his or her success in terms of well-being. A person may well feel happier and better off as a
result of achieving what he or she wanted to achieve - perhaps for his or her family, or community, or class, or party, or some other
cause. Also it is quite possible that a person’s well-being will go down as a result of frustration if there is some failure to achieve what
he or she wanted to achieve as an agent, even though those achievements are not directly concerned with his or her well-being. There
is really no sound basis for demanding that the agency aspect and the well-being aspect of a person should be independent of each
other, and it is, I suppose, even possible that every change in one will affect the other as well. However, the point at issue is not the
plausibility of their independence, but the sustainability and relevance of the distinction. The fact that two variables may be so related
that one cannot change without the other, does not imply that they are the same variable, or that they will have the same values, or that
the value of one can be obtained from the other on basis of some simple transformation. The importance of an agency achievement
does not rest entirely on the enhancement of well-being that it may indirectly cause. The agency achievement and well-being
achievement, both of which have some distinct importance, may be casually linked with each other, but this fact does not compromise
the specific importance of either. In so far as utility - based welfare calculations concentrate only on the well- being of the person,
ignoring the agency aspect, or actually fails to distinguish between the agency aspect and well-being aspect altogether, something of
real importance is lost.
8. According to the ideas in the passage, the following are not true expect:
A    The value of a person’s well-being cannot be obtained from the value of her agency.
B    A person’s agency aspect is independent of her well-being aspect.
C    A person’s agency is important because her well-being must depend on her agency.
D    A person’s agency must be entirely geared towards her own well-being.
E    A person’s well-being will be dependent on her agency in all circumstances.
A n s w e r : A
Explanation:
Consider these sentences from the 4th line of given passage:
"This dichotomy is lost in a model of exclusively self- interested motivation, in which a person’s agency must be entirely geared to his or
her own well-being. But once that straitjacket of self-interested motivation is removed, it becomes possible to recognize the
indisputable fact that the person’s agency can well be geared to considerations not covered - or at least not fully covered - by his or her
own well-being."
They make it clear that the author believes it is incorrect to completely align a person's agency to his/her well being. It is very likely that
a person's agency might not be related completely with his/her idea of well being. 
This idea is reflected in option A. 
Option B is not true because it says that both the said issues are completely independent which is not the case. The author clearly
mentions that there can be a good correlation between the two but not always or in a complete sense. 
Hence, only A can be thought of as the true sentence. 
9. In the case of Japan, there is a strong empirical evidence to suggest that systematic departure
from self-interested behavior, in the direction of duty, loyalty and goodwill have played a substantial part in industrial
success.Which of the following in closest to the ideas presented in the passage?
A    Japanese are duty bound selfless people.
B    
The sense of well-being of the Japanese people gets consistently enhanced due to this systematic departure from
the self- interested behavior.
C    Had there been no enhancement of their own well-being, the Japanese people would have not been dutiful.
D    
Ability to achieve their country’s objectives may have enhanced the sense of well-being of Japanese people.
However the agency of the Japanese people in their industrial success is probably derived from factors beyond this
sense of well-being.
  
.
E    
Japanese people’s adherence to ethos of duty, loyalty and goodwill can well be explained within the paradigm of
self- interested behavior.
A n s w e r : D
Explanation:
The key focus of the passage is to let the reader know that the sense of agency in a person and the sense of well being, even though
very strongly correlated, are individual and independent factors. While they may heavily influence each other, one should not mistake
them to be the same thing or even assume that knowing the value of one can help us easily arrive at the value of another. 
This can be applied to the industrial success in Japan by understanding that helping their country achieve success in industrial world
must have given a sense of satisfaction and achievement (i.e. agency) and to the Japanese people, and also improved their sense of
own well being, it is not necessarily the only driver behind the success. The agency of people in contributing to industrial success must
also have some roots in reasons other than personal well-being. 
This is best reflected in the option D.
10. Of the options presented below, which one is the best example for the ideas propounded in the passage?
A    
‘Change for Equality’ was a campaign by women of Iran to remove discrimination against women in their country.
Activities of the movement were attacked and jailed by the government, but the campaign continued.
B    
In January 2011, the Egyptian people came out against the regime to topple it. Their grievances included police
atrocities, state emergency laws, lack of free election, and lack of freedom of speech, corruption, unemployment,
food price inflation and low minimum wages.
C    
A worker immolated himself to highlight injustice being perpetrated by the management against the employees in
the company.
D    
The factory workers carried on with the strike in demand for increased wages, even though they were not paid
wages for the duration they were on strike.
E    
A politician went on a hunger strike against corruption which not only galvanized the state government in enacting
new laws, but also increased his image in the minds of the voters.
A n s w e r : E
Explanation:
The closing lines of the passage act as a good guide here. It says that if we forget the individuality of the sense of agency and sense of
well being and end up correlating them all the time, then we might end up drawing incorrect inferences. 
In the last option given to us, we can see that a politician is going on a hunger strike which means he is putting his sense of well being
(by depriving his body of necessity of food) on the backburner but ends up fulfilling his sense of agency by achieving a good image in
the minds of his voters. If we would have thought that sense of well being and sense of agency are correlated all the time, then we
might never have understood the rationale behind the politician's hunger strike (and some might even have deemed such an event as
an impossibility). The incident of hunger strike is a proof that sense of agency might well be driven NOT by sense of well being all the
time. And this is the point of the entire passage. Hence, it is an apt answer. 
   
11. Read the sentences given below and choose the option that is best in accordance with the ideas in the passage.
I.There is a need to distinguish between the agency aspect and the well-being aspect of a person.
II.A person can be conceptualized in terms of either agency or well-being.
III.A person is important, not just instrumentally, for the pursuit of well-being
A    I only
B    II only
C    III only
D    I and III
  
.