双语时事系列15：富人为何冷若冰霜？

2009-10-13 00:00:00来源：网络

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双语时事:富人为什么总是冷若冰霜？

Wonder why some wealthy people seem so aloof? How about this for an answer?

A series of studies published in Psychological Science found that money can influence responses to both emotional and physical pain. Specifically, the researchers found that handling physical money makes a person less sensitive to physical pain and reduces the distress of being excluded in social situations.

In other words, wealth makes you as hard and cold as steel. Or so the study says.

The methodologies for this study were odd to say the least.

For one of the tests, test subjects were told to count out a stack of $100 dollar bills and then immerse their hands in hot water (109 degrees). Those who handled the money reported less pain than those who handled slips of blank paper.

In another, a group of students counted the stack of $100 bills and then played a computer game involving a ball toss with three other simulated players. Some of the players were excluded from the ball toss during the game. Those who handled the money felt little or no distress at being excluded, while those who handled paper felt lower self-esteem.

'Acquired symbolic value of money, perhaps because of associations with power or control, can influence responses to both emotional and physical pain,' writes Harriet de Wit, a psychiatry professor at the University of Chicago. 'Conversely, thoughts of monetary loss may enhance physical or psychological pain.'

I don't know about the pain part. Money can certainly buy some good prescription pain killers.

In my own experience, money doesn't seem to insulate the wealthy from their need to be liked. In fact, some of the wealthy I know seem to have a greater need to be liked than the nonwealthy I know.

Do you think the studies findings are accurate? Does money dull physical or emotional pain?

想知道为什么有钱人都看起来那么冷冰冰的吗？下面就给你个答案。

《心理科学》(Psychological Science)发表的一系列研究结果显示，金钱可以影响一个人对情感和生理痛苦的反应。研究人员发现，打理真金白银能降低人对生理痛苦的敏感程度，并减轻人在社会环境中被排斥在外时的痛苦感。

换言之，财富能让你变得像钢铁一样又硬又冷。至少，这份研究报告是这么说的。

不过，退一步讲，这次研究的方法很奇怪。

其中一个测试要求一组受测者数一沓100美元面额的钞票，然后将手浸入热水中，他们述说的痛苦程度不及另一数白纸、然后手浸热水的对照组。

在另一个测试中，一组学生先数了百元大钞，然后开始玩计算机游戏，其中一个是和三个程序模拟的对手玩投球游戏。有一些受测者被排斥在了游戏之外，那些数过钱的学生对遭排斥一事几乎毫不沮丧，而那些数白纸的人则觉得自尊心受到了伤害。

芝加哥大学精神病学教授韦特(Harriet de Wit)写道：获得金钱的象征意义可以影响一个人对情感和肉体痛苦的反应，这或许是因为它与权力或控制力相关联；反之，破财的念头可能会加重人的肉体或生理痛苦。

我对痛苦那一部分没什么了解。花钱能买些好的止痛处方药倒是错不了。

就我亲身经历而言，金钱似乎不能割断富人对受人喜爱的需求。事实上，有一些我认识的富人比不那么富有的人更渴望受到别人的喜爱。

你认为这份研究报告的结果准确吗？金钱是否会麻醉人们肉体和精神上的痛苦？

本文选自上海新东方学校惠瑾的博客，博客链接地址：http://blog.hjenglish.com/huijin