IIM B UG (B.Sc-Hons.)- Sample Paper 2026 · English Comprehension · Question 9
IIM B UG (B.Sc-Hons.)- Sample Paper 2026 question on Para Jumbles, with the answer and a step-by-step solution.
In each question, a paragraph consists of six sentences. The first and sixth sentences are in their correct positions, while the order of the middle four sentences has been jumbled and numbered (i), (ii), (iii) and (iv). Below each set of sentences are four options indicating the possible order of the four sentences. Choose the option that best makes the six sentences into a logical and coherent paragraph.
First sentence: In one research study, professors Greg Northcraft (University of Illinois) and Margaret Neale (Stanford University) provided real-estate agents with a great deal of information about a house that was for sale.
(i) The agents then were asked to name an appropriate list price for the house, estimate the house’s appraisal value, state how much a buyer should reasonably pay for the house, and name the lowest offer they would accept for the house if they were the seller.
(ii) The agents were given randomly chosen list prices—in essence, the seller’s first offer—for the house ranging from $119,000 to $149,000.
(iii) Agents who were given a higher list price believed the house was worth more than did agents who were given a lower list price.
(iv) The agents insisted that the random list price they were given did not influence their evaluations, yet their responses suggested that the anchoring effect came into play.
Sixth sentence: Research on the anchoring effect suggests that the party who makes the first offer in a negotiation can gain a powerful advantage by steering talks in her favour.
- Aii, iii, i, iv
- Bii, i, iv, iii
- Civ, i, iii, ii
- Div, iii, i, ii
Answer & solution
Answer: Option B
The first sentence says the agents were given information about a house. The story of the experiment then runs in time order:
(ii) First, each agent was given a random list price (the 'first offer').
(i) 'The agents then were asked' to estimate prices – 'then' shows this comes after (ii).
(iv) The agents claimed the list price did not influence them, 'yet their responses suggested that the anchoring effect came into play'.
(iii) This explains how their responses showed it: agents given a higher list price valued the house higher.
The sixth sentence draws the general lesson about anchoring in negotiations.
Shortcut: 'then' in (i) must follow (ii); (iii) is the evidence for the claim in (iv), so (iv)–(iii) is a pair.
Hence, the answer is option 2.
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