Question

　　Your professor is teaching a class on sociology. Write a post responding to the professor's question.

　　In your response, you should do the following.

　　- Express and support your opinion.

　　- Make a contribution to the discussion in your own words.

　　An effective response will contain at least 100 words.

　　Dr Achebe:

　　This week, we are discussing the social psychology of sports. We have learned that sports often have positive psychological effects on athletes, such as the members of sports teams. But how can we describe their effects on other groups of people, such as sports enthusiasts or sports fans? Consider the following question: When people spend a lot of time watching sports or following their favorite team, does it have a negative effect on their lives? Why or why not?

　　Claire:

　　I agree that focusing too much on sports can have negative impacts. For example, some people who like watching sports on television have few other interests. In fact, it seems like watching sports is all they're interested in. I sometimes find such people annoying because they care too much about things that don't matter.

　　Paul:

　　I am not sure what we mean by spending "a lot of time" following sports. But following sports has helped me in life. When I first met one of my best friends, Daphne, I started a conversation with her by mentioning a sports team I liked. Then we moved to other topics but sports were a great conversation starter.

　　范文正文

　　Just as Paul mentioned, I believe that sports spectatorship has a positive rather than a negative influence on people’s mental health. For one thing, watching sports reduces the likelihood of experiencing symptoms of depression. Whether one is part of a buzzing crowd in a stadium or just watch from home on TV, 【状语从句】 it is easy for them to engage in the emotional highs and lows when they celebrate or commiserate with their favourite team or athlete. This involvement helps to forge group identity and belonging, enhancing spectators’ life satisfaction. For another, sports spectators tend to improve their general mental well-being through social bonding. As Paul pointed out, they typically have richer social networks than non-spectators, as these individuals find it easier to start casual small talks with friends about their favorite teams.【原因状语从句】 This interaction can create a sense of camaraderie and may help reduce loneliness and depression. Therefore, even if sports fans do not actually participate in physical sports, they still reap mental health benefits.

　　用词用语整理

　　本题是2024年9月21日下午场的托福学术讨论真题。这道题可谓2024年的高频题目，全年一共考了3次，都是原题重现，而且有时出题间隔不到一个月。

　　本题与体育运动有关，但又与常规话题不同，讨论的不是做运动，而是看体育比赛的影响。题中教授说，体育运动往往对运动员的心理有积极影响，但它对体育爱好者的影响还不太明确。他问两位学生，当人们花费大量时间观看体育比赛或关注他们最喜欢的球队时，他们的生活是否受到了负面影响?Claire认为，过度关注体育会产生负面影响，因为这些体育迷过于在意比赛，而比赛与他们自己的生活关系不大。然而，Paul认为看体育比赛对他的人生有帮助，因为他通过体育与自己最好的朋友结缘。

　　本文赞同Paul的观点，认为关注体育赛事对粉丝的心理健康有积极影响。文章分成“对观众自己”和“对观众与他人的关系”两个方面来阐述，并在每个方面都采用了“分论点+解释+总结”的论述结构。一方面，观看体育比赛会减少抑郁症状。这是因为，不管人们是在体育场现场观看，还是在家中看电视，他们都能感到自己最喜欢的球队或运动员经历的情绪高潮和低谷。这种参与感有助于提高观众的归属感，从而让他们更幸福。另一方面，看体育比赛能带来更多社交，改善心理健康。在这一点上，本文联系上了题目中给出的学生Paul的观点。我方认为，正如Paul所说，看比赛的人可以与朋友闲聊他们最喜欢的球队，所以通常更容易交朋友。这种互动能增进友情，减少孤独和抑郁。因此，虽然体育迷并没有做运动，但他们仍然可以通过看比赛促进心理健康。

　　用词用语整理

　　sports spectatorship n. 体育观赛

　　这个词组与后文出现的sports spectator(体育比赛的观众)一样，都是对题目中“watching sports”的同义替换。

　　likelihood n. 可能性

　　buzzing crowd n. 喧闹的人群

　　commiserate v. 对...表示同情或惋惜

　　常见搭配：commiserate with sb over sth或commiserate with sb upon sth。

　　意为：对某事向某人表示同情。

　　例句：I began by commiserating with her over the defeat.我首先对她的失败表示惋惜。

　　forge v. (努力地)制造，生产

　　social bonding n. 社会联结

　　camaraderie n. 同志情谊，友情

　　reap v. 收割，收获

　　可以与gain, obtain等同义替换。

　　常见搭配：

　　reap a benefit 收获好处

　　reap a profit 得到利润

　　reap a reward 收获奖励

　　Reap what you sow. 种瓜得瓜，种豆得豆。或善有善报，恶有恶报。

　　【状语从句】

　　Whether one is part of a buzzing crowd in a stadium or just watch from home on TV, it is easy for them to engage in the emotional highs and lows when they celebrate or commiserate with their favourite team or athlete.

　　这句话用于解释看比赛是怎样减少抑郁情绪的。前半句whether引导的从句描述了看比赛的不同方式，但无论是和喧闹的人群一起现场观看，还是在家里通过电视观看，观众都能与他们支持的选手和队伍同声共气，为他们的胜利呐喊，也为他们的失利惋惜。

　　【原因状语从句】

　　As Paul pointed out, they typically have richer social networks than non-spectators, as these individuals find it easier to start casual small talks with friends about their favorite teams.

　　这句话采取了“前果后因”的结构，前半句提出观点“常看体育比赛的人会有更多朋友”，后半句用as引导原因状语从句，给出理由“因为他们更容易用他们最喜欢的队伍作为话题，与朋友开始一段谈话”。这种“先概括后具体”的思维方式，在英语议论文写作中很常用。

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