READING PASSAGE 1
Why Trends Happen: A Scientific View of Social Contagion
A.
Trends are commonly associated with fashion, internet challenges or popular phrases, but they represent a deeper and more systematic phenomenon. In scientific terms, a trend can be defined as a pattern of behaviour, idea or product that is adopted by a large number of people within a limited period of time and spreads noticeably faster than ordinary forms of diffusion. Understanding why trends emerge and disappear requires insights from psychology, sociology and the study of digital algorithms.
B.
From a psychological perspective, trends are closely related to fundamental human needs. One of the most important is the need for social belonging. Human beings evolved as social animals whose survival depended on membership of a group. Consequently, individuals are highly sensitive to signals indicating what others in their social environment are doing. When a particular behaviour appears to be common among friends, colleagues or members of the same online community, many people automatically interpret it as socially acceptable, or even desirable. Copying that behaviour becomes a way to reduce the risk of social exclusion and to maintain membership of the group.
C.
A second psychological mechanism is known as social proof. In complex environments, individuals often lack the time or information needed to evaluate each choice rationally. Instead, they rely on cognitive shortcuts, or heuristics. One such shortcut is the assumption that if many other people are engaging with something, it is probably valuable or at least safe. High numbers of views, likes or downloads act as visible indicators that a behaviour or item has already been “approved” by others. This creates a self-reinforcing process: the more popular something appears, the more likely additional people are to adopt it, pushing its popularity even higher.
D.
Emotions also play a crucial role in the formation of trends. Psychological research has shown that content which provokes strong emotional reactions—such as amusement, surprise, anger or admiration—is more memorable and more likely to be shared. Behaviours that are emotionally engaging and simple to imitate, such as a short dance routine or a catchy phrase, are particularly prone to becoming trends. The combination of high emotional impact and low effort lowers the threshold for participation, encouraging even hesitant individuals to join.
E.
While psychology explains why individuals are susceptible to trends, sociology and network science help to explain how trends spread across entire populations. Modern societies can be viewed as vast networks in which each person is a node connected to others through social relationships. A behaviour that starts at a small number of nodes may quickly die out if it fails to spread beyond the initial group. However, if it reaches individuals who occupy highly connected positions in the network—such as celebrities, influencers or central community members—it can jump rapidly from cluster to cluster and become visible on a large scale.
F.
Within these networks, each person can be thought of as having a threshold for adoption: a minimum proportion of their contacts who must adopt a behaviour before they decide to follow. Some individuals have low thresholds and are willing to try new things as soon as they observe a few early adopters. Others require a much higher proportion of their network to participate before they feel comfortable joining in. When the number of participants passes a series of critical thresholds in the network, a trend can suddenly move from a marginal phenomenon to a widespread one. To observers, this appears as an overnight explosion in popularity, even though the process may have been building quietly for some time.
G.
Technological systems, especially social media platforms, significantly accelerate these dynamics. Algorithms used by platforms such as video-sharing or social networking sites are designed to maximise user engagement. To achieve this aim, they prioritise content that generates strong interaction: long viewing times, frequent sharing or intense commenting. When an item begins to perform slightly better than average, the algorithm typically exposes it to a larger group of users. If the high engagement continues, the system repeats this process, creating what can be described as an amplification loop. Trend-like patterns are therefore not only created by human choices but also actively reinforced by the design goals of digital platforms.
H.
At the same time, these algorithms personalise content according to each user’s behaviour. This personalisation can create what researchers call “filter bubbles” or “echo chambers”. Within these bubbles, a trend may appear universal to one group of users while remaining almost invisible to others. For example, a particular challenge or meme might be dominant among fans of a certain music genre but unknown in older demographic groups. As a result, multiple micro-trends can exist simultaneously, each confined to its own digital environment but following similar principles of contagion.
I.
Trends are also connected to the question of identity. Participating in or rejecting a trend can act as a symbolic statement about who someone is and which groups they belong to. Individuals may engage with certain trends to project an image of being humorous, sophisticated, rebellious or socially aware. In smaller communities, including workplaces, schools or specialised online forums, in-group trends—such as internal jokes or distinctive phrases—function as markers that distinguish insiders from outsiders. In this way, trends contribute to the ongoing construction and negotiation of both personal and collective identities.
J.
Like living organisms, trends exhibit a recognisable life cycle. In the emergence stage, a behaviour appears in a small group, often through experimentation, artistic creativity or偶然 events. During the diffusion stage, the behaviour spreads outward through social networks and digital platforms, supported by social proof and algorithmic amplification. At the peak of the trend, awareness becomes widespread and even individuals with high adoption thresholds may feel compelled to participate. Eventually, the trend enters decline. Repetition reduces its novelty, commercial exploitation may make it appear artificial, and new trends compete for attention. Some trends later reappear in modified form, echoing the cyclical patterns seen in fashion.
K.
From a scientific standpoint, trends should not be judged as inherently positive or negative. They are natural outcomes of human cognition, social structure and technological design. On the one hand, they can facilitate the rapid spread of beneficial behaviours, such as charitable campaigns or public health messages. On the other hand, they can also disseminate misinformation, encourage risky behaviour or intensify social pressure and fear of missing out. The crucial issue, therefore, is not whether trends exist, but how individuals and societies respond to them. Developing critical awareness of the psychological and technological mechanisms behind trends may help people make more informed choices about which waves to ride and which to let pass.
Questions 1–5
Reading Passage 1 has eleven paragraphs, A–K.
Choose the correct heading for paragraphs B–F from the list of headings below.
Write the correct number, i–ix, in boxes 1–5 on your answer sheet.
List of Headings
i. The function of in-group trends in small communities
ii. Emotional intensity and ease of imitation
iii. The impact of algorithms on content visibility
iv. Identity construction through trends
v. Human need for social acceptance
vi. A definition of trends from a scientific perspective
vii. How different people decide when to follow a trend
viii. Mental shortcuts and the role of social proof
ix. Viewing society as a network of connected individuals
- Paragraph B
- Paragraph C
- Paragraph D
- Paragraph E
- Paragraph F
Questions 6–9
Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 1?
In boxes 6–9 on your answer sheet, write:
- TRUE if the statement agrees with the information
- FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
- NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this
6. Trends always spread at a constant speed once they have appeared in a social network.
7. Some individuals require a large proportion of their contacts to adopt a behaviour before they are willing to join in.
8. Social media platforms intentionally create trends in order to promote specific political messages.
9. A behaviour may seem almost universal to users inside a certain online community while remaining largely unknown elsewhere.
Questions 10–13
Complete the summary below.
Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 10–13 on your answer sheet.
The Life Cycle and Evaluation of Trends
The passage explains that trends pass through several stages that resemble those of living organisms. In the 10 ________ stage, a new behaviour arises within a limited group, often as a result of creativity or chance. During the next stage, known as 11 ________, the behaviour spreads more widely through social networks and digital platforms, eventually reaching a point at which it may achieve maximum visibility, or 12 ________.
Over time, however, the trend loses its novelty, may be exploited for commercial purposes and begins to compete with newer phenomena, leading to its 13 ________. The author argues that trends are neither inherently positive nor negative, but that individuals should develop an informed awareness of the mechanisms that cause them to spread.
SUGGESTED ANSWERS
Questions 1–5
- B → v
- C → viii
- D → ii
- E → ix
- F → vii
Questions 6–9
FALSE
TRUE
NOT GIVEN
TRUE
Questions 10–13
emergence
diffusion
peak
decline