在某些文化中，幸福可能使人更健康

在某些文化中，幸福可能使人更健康

I am an Eeyore; I know this. I'm a glass-half-empty, worst-case-scenario, dwell-on-the-imperfections, existential-dread ruminating worrywart, and I envy the people I encounter who seem to effortlessly exude perkiness and fun.

我是一只猫头鹰，我知道这一点。我是一个半空的玻璃杯，最坏的情况，纠缠于不完美，恐惧和忧虑，我羡慕我遇到的那些似乎毫不费力就散发出古怪和乐趣的人。

That's not to say there's no joy in my life; it just doesn't come as naturally to me as it appears to for others. And yet despite fully meeting the textbook definition of "the opposite of an optimist," I've never thought to label myself a pessimist.

这并不是说我的生活中没有快乐;只是它对我来说并不像其他人看起来那么自然。然而，尽管完全符合教科书对“乐观主义者的反面”的定义，我从未想过要给自己贴上悲观主义者的标签。

In large part, that's because of the baggage associated with the term. In America, the tyranny of positivity reigns supreme, so much so that I often find myself worrying about how much I worry.

在很大程度上，这是因为与这个术语相关的包袱。在美国，积极向上的暴政至高无上，以至于我经常发现自己担心自己有多担心。

I worry about my gloomy outlook because of how strongly our culture emphasizes the value of a positive one.

我担心我的悲观前景，因为我们的文化如此强烈地强调积极的价值观。

And I worry about the ways that all my worrying could potentially affect my health and the health of those around me.

我担心我所有的担心可能会影响我的健康和我周围的人的健康。

Just a few months ago, the New York Times declaredthat "studies have shown an indisputable link between having a positive outlook and health benefits like lower blood pressure, less heart disease, better weight control and healthier blood sugar levels." Plenty of news articles present similar ideas in a stark black-and-white fashion: optimists live longer; pessimism kills.

就在几个月前，“纽约时报”(The New York Times)宣布，“研究表明，拥有积极的前景与降血压、减少心脏病、更好地控制体重和更健康的血糖水平等健康益处之间存在着无可争辩的联系。”大量的新闻文章以赤裸裸的黑白分明的方式提出了类似的观点：乐观主义者活得更长;悲观主义会致命。

In a study published last month in the journal Psychological Science, a team of psychologists from the University of Wisconsin-Madison reported that positivity was related to improved health markers in Americans, but not in Japanese people.

在上月发表于《心理科学》(Psychological Science)杂志上的一项研究中，威斯康星大学麦迪逊分校(University of Wisconsin-Madison)的一组心理学家报告称，美国人的积极情绪与健康指标的改善有关，但对日本人则不是如此。

The study authors analyzed health data from 1,017 American and 374 Japanese people, taken from the Midlife in the United States and Midlife in Japan studies, both funded by the National Institute on Aging. Participants reported how frequently they had felt ten different positive emotions in the previous 30 days, and blood samples were taken to measure lipid levels, an indicator of heart health.

该研究的作者分析了1017名美国人和374名日本人的健康数据，这些数据分别来自美国的中年和日本的中年研究，均由美国国家老龄化研究所(National Institute on Aging)资助。参与者报告了他们在过去30天内感到十种不同积极情绪的频率，并采集了血液样本来测量血脂水平，这是衡量心脏健康的一个指标。

Even after accounting for things like a person's age, gender, socioeconomic status, and chronic health conditions, there was a significant difference between the two groups: "American adults who experience high levels of positive emotions, such as feeling 'cheerful' and 'extremely happy,' are more likely to have healthy blood-lipid profiles," explains lead study author Jiah Yoo, but the same was not true among Japanese adults.

即使考虑了一个人的年龄、性别、社会经济状况和慢性健康状况等因素，两组之间也存在显著差异：“经历高水平积极情绪的美国成年人，如感觉‘快乐’和‘极度快乐’，更有可能拥有健康的血脂谱，”该研究的主要作者Jah Yoo解释道，但在日本成年人中并非如此。

The discrepancy, she adds, "suggests that health implications of positive emotions may not be completely driven by the inherent nature of positive emotions, but also shaped by American cultural context."

她补充说，这种差异“表明积极情绪对健康的影响可能并非完全由积极情绪的固有性质所驱动，而是由美国文化背景所塑造的。”

"In American cultures, experiencing positive emotions is seen as desirable and is even encouraged via socialization," Yoo explains. "But in East Asian cultures, people commonly view positive emotions as having dark sides -- they are fleeting, may attract unnecessary attention from others, and can be a distraction from focusing on important tasks."

“在美国文化中，体验积极的情绪被视为是可取的，甚至通过社交得到鼓励，”Yoo 解释说。“但在东亚文化中，人们通常认为积极情绪有不好的一面——它们转瞬即逝，可能会引起他人不必要的注意，还可能分散人们对重要任务的注意力。”