Five jumbled up sentences (labelled 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5), related to a topic, are given below. Four of them can be put together to form a coherent paragraph. Identify the odd sentence and key in the number of that sentence as your answer.
- One argument is that actors that do not fit within a single, well-defined category may suffer an "illegitimacy discount".
- Others believe that complex identities confuse audiences about an organization's role or purpose.
- Some organizations have complex and multidimensional identities that span or combine categories, while other organizations possess narrow identities.
- Identity is one of the most important features of organizations, but there exist opposing views among sociologists about how identity affects organizational performance.
- Those who think that complex identities are beneficial point to the strategic advantages of ambiguity, and organizations' potential to differentiate themselves from competitors.
Five jumbled up sentences (labelled 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5), related to a topic, are given below. Four of them can be put together to form a coherent paragraph. Identify the odd sentence and key in the number of that sentence as your answer.
- One argument is that actors that do not fit within a single, well-defined category may suffer an "illegitimacy discount".
- Others believe that complex identities confuse audiences about an organization's role or purpose.
- Some organizations have complex and multidimensional identities that span or combine categories, while other organizations possess narrow identities.
- Identity is one of the most important features of organizations, but there exist opposing views among sociologists about how identity affects organizational performance.
- Those who think that complex identities are beneficial point to the strategic advantages of ambiguity, and organizations' potential to differentiate themselves from competitors.
Entered answer:
Solution
Let us trace the main topic: organizational identity and how it affects performance, with opposing views among sociologists.
From passage: "Identity is one of the most important features of organizations, but there exist opposing views among sociologists about how identity affects organizational performance."
The logical flow should be:
- Start with main topic (sentence 4)
- Describe types of identities (sentence 3)
- Present both sides of the debate (sentences 5 & 2)
Sentence 4 → introduces the topic and opposing views
Sentence 3 → explains complex vs narrow identities
Sentence 5 → one side: complex identities are beneficial
Sentence 2 → other side: complex identities confuse audiences
🔴 Sentence 1 is the odd one → context-shift → suddenly talks about "actors" and "illegitimacy discount" instead of staying focused on organizational identity debate
🟢 Sentence 2 → fits perfectly as one viewpoint in the debate
🟢 Sentence 3 → essential setup explaining identity types
🟢 Sentence 4 → perfect topic sentence introducing the debate
🟢 Sentence 5 → completes the opposing viewpoint to sentence 2
The key confusion students might have: Sentence 1 seems related because it mentions categories, but notice it shifts from "organizations" to "actors" and introduces completely new terminology ("illegitimacy discount") that doesn't connect with the rest of the discussion about organizational identity benefits vs drawbacks.
Answer: 1