新奇事件簿 现金回报更能激励人们减肥

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Nutritionists and dieting experts have long sought the answer to how to encourage people to lose weight. It seems overweight people are more interested in the size of their wallets than their waistlines. Researchers in the USA may have found one answer – cash rewards and penalties. A year-long study of 100 weight watchers by the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota found a system of financial incentives and fines had a significant impact on people's success in shedding kilos. The weight-conscious dieters received $20 a month if they met their weight loss goals and had to pay a penalty if they didn't. Those motivated by financial gain lost an average of 4.1kg, compared to just 1kg for those without the cash bonus.

营养学家和节食专家长期以来一直寻找如何鼓励人们减肥的答案。看上去似乎超重的人对他们钱包的厚度比对腰围的尺寸更感兴趣。美国研究人员可能发现了一个答案——现金奖励和惩罚。明尼苏达梅奥诊所对100名超重者进行的长达一年的研究发现一个经济奖惩系统对激励人们减肥有着重要影响。在意体重的节食者如果达到了减肥目标每月可以获得20美元的奖励，如果没有达到目标必须缴纳罚款。受到现金奖励激励的人平均减肥4.1千克，而没有奖金的人只减肥1千克。

The study followed 100 obese adults aged between 18 to 63, who were weighed every month for a year. They were put into four groups, some with a monetary focus, others with an emphasis on education and behaviour change. The $20 a month was enough for the financially-motivated dieters to out-diet the other groups. Mayo Clinic's Dr Donald Hensrud said: "Just wanting to lose weight isn't enough. Financial incentives can be powerful." Head researcher Dr Steven Driver found the fear of losing money was stronger than the thought of receiving a bonus. He said: "Fear of losing money tends to motivate people about two and a half times more than the prospect of gaining the same amount of money."

这项研究追踪了100名介于18岁到63岁的肥胖成年人，一年之内每个月都测量体重。他们被分成四个小组，一些有金钱奖励，其他人则强调教育和行为方面的改变。每月20美元对于那些受金钱激励的节食者来说足以超越另外一组节食者。梅奥诊所的Donald Hensrud博士表示：“仅仅有减肥的想法是不够的。金钱激励的威力比较强大。”首席研究员Steven Driver博士发现，害怕损失金钱的念头比得到奖金的念头更加强烈。他说：“害怕损失金钱的效果是希望得到同样金额奖金的效果的2.5倍。”