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Unit 6 Psychological Health

Passage A Is It Healthy to Be a Football Supporter?

— Why Fans Know the Score

Die-hard football fans hit the heights when their team wins and reaches the depths of

despair when they lose. Scientific studies show the love affair with a team may be as

emotionally intense as the real thing, and that team clashes have gladiatorial power.

What's going on? Why do fervent fans have hormonal surges and other psychological

changes while watching games? Why does fans' self-esteem soar with victory and

plummet in defeat, sometimes affecting their lives long afterwards? Why do people feel so

drawn to form such deep ties to teams? Is avidly rooting for a team good or bad for your

health? You may find the answers surprising.

THE FAN'S PERSONALITY

Psychologists often portray die-hard fans as lonely misfits searching for self-esteem

by identifying with a team,2 but a study suggests the opposite. It reveals that football fans

suffer fewer bouts of depression and alienation than people who never watch Match Of

The Day. Hard-core fans also demonstrate a fierce and unbreakable bond. It's possible to

trace the roots of fan psychology to a primitive time when warriors fighting to protect

their tribes were the true representatives of their race. In modern times, so the theory

goes, professional sportsmen are warriors of a city or country fighting a stylized war

waged on a football pitch.

IT'S WAR OUT THERE

Some confrontations on the pitch are gladiatorial. In this respect, our sports heroes

are our gladiators. A football match, especially between rival teams, isn't some

light-hearted display of athletic prowess. The self is emotionally involved in the outcome

because whoever you're rooting for represents YOU. So professional footballers seem to

recreate the intense emotions in some fans that tribal warfare aroused in their forebears.

It could even be that these emotions have fueled the explosion in the popularity of sports

over the past 20 years.

STATUS BY PROXY

So, through football matches, it becomes possible to gain respect from your rivals,

albeit vicariously . This means you can be highly regarded not for your own achievement,

but through your connection to a team that wins. Or, if you like, by your connection to

individual footballers for their skill, such as midfielder David Beckham, winger Ryan

Giggs, and striker Thierry Henry.

The connection, however, can be fickle. Bragging sports fans tend to claim credit for

their team's success, saying "we won" to describe a victory, but distance themselves from

a team's failure, saying "they lost" describing a defeat.

LOYAL TO THE END

A raft of studies has found that "highly-identified" fans - both men and women - are

unlikely to abandon a team when it's doing badly. Anyone who's read Fever Pitch by Nick

Hornby knows that this is true of the ardent Arsenal fan. Not only that, they tend to

blame their team's failures on a biased referee or on bad luck, rather than on Arsenal's

mistakes or the other team's skill. It's not surprising that these avid fans get more

psychologically aroused at games and spend more money on tickets and merchandise.

IS TESTOSTERONE A FACTOR?

Testosterone levels in male fans rise markedly after a victory but drop just as sharply

after a defeat. Apparently the same pattern has been documented in male animals who

fight over a female. Biologists think that the human animal may have evolved this way to

end conflicts quickly. If so, it provides an interesting biological explanation of football

hooliganism after big matches. Science backs up this theory. Testosterone levels were

measured in 21 Italian and Brazilian men in Atlanta before and after Brazil's victory over

Italy in soccer's 1994 World Cup. The Brazilians' testosterone rose 28 per cent on average,

while the Italians' levels dropped 27 per cent.

CAN BEING A FAN DAMAGE YOUR HEALTH?

Yes, it can. Indeed it can be fatal. The tension felt by football fans during penalty

shoot-outs can trigger heart attacks and strokes in male spectators. On the day Holland

lost to France in Euro 96, deaths there from heart attacks and strokes rose by 50 per cent.

GROUP IDENTITY

Being an ardent fan could be simply the desire to belong to a group or a society - a

need once answered by religion and politics. This explains why some fans remain loyal

through thick and thin, and despite the repeated failure of their teams. Surrounding

yourself at a match with people who so clearly espouse your own enthusiasms, and

identifying your tribal membership with hats, scarves , Mexican waves and songs, makes

you feel you belong as little else does. What's more, you're part of a group where no

questions are asked, explanations are unnecessary and where you can always rely on

support. With so many traditional institutions like religion and family beginning to break

down, the football crowd is the perfect family.

A HEALTHIER OUTLOOK?

In most cases, a deep attachment to a team is healthy. Several studies show that an

intense interest in a team can stave off depression and foster feelings of self-worth and

belonging. That applies to all ardent sports fans. All human beings - including football

fans - share the basic psychological need to belong. Without religion, without family,

something has to answer that need. Today football, above all other sports, fills that crucial

void

A人爱好足球有利健康吗？— 为什么球迷知道真相

当球队取胜时，铁杆球迷会兴奋到极点；而当球队失败时，又会极度低迷。科学研究发

现，对一支球队的恋情可能在情感上与真正恋爱一样强烈，而且球队之间的碰撞具有角斗士

般的影响力量。

究竟是怎么回事？为什么热情的球迷在观看比赛的时候会发生荷尔蒙的起伏以及其他

的心理变化？为什么球迷的自尊心随着胜利而高涨，随着失败而低落，有时会影响到他们以

后很长时间的生活？人们为什么会对球队形成如此深厚的情结？况且，如此痴心地全力支持

一支球队于你的健康是好还是坏？你可能会发现答案却令人吃惊。

球迷的性格

心理学家经常将铁杆球迷描绘成寂寞而又不适应环境的人，他们通过对一只球队的认同

来寻求自我。但一项研究却得出了相反的结论。这项研究显示，与那些从来不看当天比赛的

人们相比，足球迷们所经受的沮丧和麻木要小。铁杆球迷还会显示与球队狂热的牢不可破的

联系。这种球迷心理的根源也许可以追朔到原始时期。那时，为保护他们部落而战的武士是

他们种族的真正的代表。在现代道理依然如此，职业运动员是一个城市或国家的武士，打的

是足球场上发动的遵守规则的战争。

一场战争

球场上的对抗是激烈的。从这方面看，我们的体育英雄就是我们的斗士。足球比赛，尤

其是在竞争对手之间，并不是一种轻松的运动技艺的展现。你自身会在情感上介入比赛的结

果，因为你所全力支持的球队代表着你。所以，职业足球选手似乎能对一些球迷再现当年部

落战争对他们的祖先所产生的那种紧张情绪。甚至可以说，正是这种情绪在过去的20年中，

加速了人们迷恋体育运动的狂热化。

代理人身分

因此，通过足球比赛，你有可能会得到你的对手的尊重，虽然只是间接的感受。这就意

味着，你可能受到十分敬重，但这不是因为你自己的成就，而是因为你与获胜的球队有联系。

再者，如果你愿意，你还可以将自己与某个球技精湛的足球队员相联系，如中场队员大卫?

贝克汉姆，边锋来恩?吉格斯，以及前锋铁瑞?亨利等。

当然，那种关联可能是不牢固的。爱炫耀的体育迷在称赞他们球队的胜利时总爱说“我

们赢了”，但是却与自己球队的失败保持距离，而说“他们输了”。

善始善终

大量研究发现，那些“高度投入”的球迷——无论男女——不大可能在球队表现不佳时背

离球队。凡读过尼克?霍恩比的《极度兴奋》的人都知道，阿森纳的足球迷正是如此。不仅

如此，他们还把他们球队的失利归咎于裁判不公或球运不佳，而不说阿森纳足球队的差错或

其对手的技艺。因此，这些狂热的球迷对比赛高度亢奋并花费更多的金钱购买球票和俱乐部

的商品，这一点就不足为怪了。

睾丸激素有影响吗？

球队获胜后男性球迷的睾丸激素含量会显著上升，而在失利后显著下降。这种特性在为

争夺雌性而战的雄性动物身上也得到了验证。生物学家认为，人类可能已演化了这一方法来

尽快结束冲突。如果是这样，它就为大赛后的足球流氓行为提供了一个有趣的生物学解释。

科学验证了这一理论。在1994年的亚特兰大世界杯赛中，分别在巴西队战胜意大利队之前

和之后对21名意大利人和巴西人的睾丸激素含量进行了测试。结果，赛后巴西人的睾丸激

素上升了28%，而意大利人的睾丸激素却下降了27%。

作为球迷会损害健康吗？

是的，甚至是致命的。在罚点球时的紧张心情可能会触发男球迷的心脏病发作和中风。

96年的欧洲杯赛中，当荷兰队输给法国队时的当天，因心脏病发作及中风而死亡的人数提

高了50%。

团体特征

作一名热情的球迷可能只是希望属于某一团体或组织——这是一种曾经被宗教和政治

所满足的一种需求。这可以解释为什么一些球迷面对球队的不断地失利依然义无反顾地忠诚

于他们的球队。在比赛中，你周围的人群能够激起你极大的热情，而且你可以通过挥舞帽子

和围巾、墨西哥式的人浪以及歌唱，来表明你只属于这一群体。而且,你是这一群体的一员，

在这里从不问问题，没有必要解释，并且总是有人支持你。随着宗教和家庭等诸多传统体系

的开始分解，足球人群就成了完美的家庭。

较健康的面貌？

在大多数场合下，深深地依恋于某一球队是有益的。多项研究表明，对某一球队所产生

的强烈兴趣可以忘却沮丧，并可培养自身价值和归属感。这一点适合于所有的热情体育迷。

全部人类——包括足球迷——都有这种最基本的心理需求：归属感。没有了宗教，没有了家

庭，必须要有一种新东西来满足这一需求。今天，盖过所有其他运动项目的足球，填补了这

一至关重要的空缺。

Passage B A Working Man Is a Healthy Man

OK, you’re only 30-years-old — or maybe even 40 or 50 — and are already

fantasizing about retiring. You’ve got the (fill in the blank: stock options, trust fund, rich

wife) in place and now the only question is when. What’s the best time to devote yourself

full-time to golf?

In terms of the picture, not working, whether by choice or not, is worse for us than

working.

A dreadful thought, perhaps — particularly if working for a living has never agreed

with you.1 But epidemiological higher analyses of every variety have long concluded that

men who retire early don’t live as long as men who keep working late into geezerhood.

Given the opportunity to fill our days with nothing but recreational activity, we get in

trouble — get beaned by a shanked golf ball, fall off a fishing boat after a beer too many,

that kind of thing.

Anything that removes us too much from the nurturing world of women is simply

bad for our health. That’s not to say that we don’t suffer some ill effects from work. Men

are the victims of more than 90 percent of all job-related accidents. Our highly

competitive instincts also propel us to advance in our professions and climbing the ladder

can be stressful (although interestingly, most CEO’s are in excellent health; they’re highly

resilient, born leaders).

Any job in which the tasks are slightly beyond our reach is going to cause stress —

along with the high blood pressure, depressed immunity and increased risk of

cardiovascular disease. But, then, raising children is stressful. Unemployment is really

stressful. Vacations can be stressful. Driving in Milan is even a nightmare.

The point is that, in terms of the picture, not working, whether by choice or not, is

worse for us than working. This has always been true, but now there are some modern

wrinkles on this truism that reflect changing gender roles.

REWARDS OF SUCCESS

Work is good for men — especially if the proper conditions are in place. For instance

— and this is not likely to sit well with social egalitarians — men who are married to

"homemaker” wives are more likely to have upwardly mobile careers. That’s the

conclusion of the Cornell University Retirement and Well-Being Study, which also found

the converse to be true: Men married to women who work full-time are more likely to

have downwardly mobile careers. From other data, we know that a successful and

accomplished man is a healthy and happy man.

A recent Scottish study also points to the effects changing gender roles are having on

men’s working life. The increased number of women in both part-time and full-time work,

the researchers say, may indirectly be responsible for rising rates of suicide and

depression in men, at least in the British Isles. For men, the resultant loss of status as sole

financial provider for the family and the perceived loss of social status could all be risk

factors for depression.

Family life also affects the benefits a man obtains from work. After having a baby,

American men work longer hours, particularly if the child is a boy.

"We can only guess that having a son increases the value of marriage and family for

men,” says Shelly Lundberg, a psychologist at the University of Washington, an

economics professor who did the research. Using data from the U.S. Panel Study of

Income Dynamics, he found that the birth of a first son generated an average increase in a

man’s work time of 84 hours every year after the boy’s birth — the equivalent of more

than two additional weeks on the job. Men added only 31 hours after having a daughter.

They also discovered a "fatherhood premium” that raised men’s hourly wages by about 5

percent every time they fathered a child.

RETIREMENT

Research repeatedly has shown that a working family man with more disposable

income is a happier, healthier man.

Still not convinced? The findings of people who study retirement suggest some good

reasons not to retire. For one thing, newly retired men experience more marital conflict

than non-retired men. Your wife simply finds it stressful to wonder whether you’ve been

beaned by a golf ball or bobbing in the ocean next to your empty beer can.

The good news is that you can regain whatever you may have lost by retiring — and

then going back to work. Psychologists Jungmeen E. Kim and Phyllis Moen of Cornell

found that men who retire often gain a new lease on life when they decide to go back to

work.

"Post-retirement employment appears to be beneficial for their psychological

well-being,” says Kim. Those who are retired and re-employed report the highest morale

and lowest depression. And men who are retired and not re-employed experience the

lowest morale and most depression.

Their study of 534 married men and women between 50 and 74 found the

work-status links to morale and depression were regardless of age, income and health.

So suck it up, buddy, and plan to work until you drop. It’s one prescription for

longevity that is known to work.

B男人工作有利于健康?

也许，你只有30岁——或者40岁，50岁——而且已经在想象着要退休。你已拥有（填

空选项：购股选择权、信托基金、有钱的妻子），而且现在仅有的问题是什么时候退休。什

么时候是全身心地投入到高尔夫球的最佳时机？

或许这是一个可怕的念头，尤其是对那些工作不是为了养家糊口的人来说。而且种种流

行病学分析早已得出结论：较早退休的人并不比那些工作到老的人寿命长。假如有机会整天

除了娱乐活动别无他事，我们就会遇到麻烦——被高尔夫球击中头部，喝酒过多掉下渔船，

诸如此类的事情。

任何事情使得我们过多地远离妇女的关爱世界都不利于我们的健康。这并不是说工作不

会带给我们有害的影响。男人是90%以上的与工作有关的事故的受害者。高度竞争的本能

也驱使我们在事业上求得发展，而一级一级的往上爬也可能使人紧张（虽然有趣的是，大多

数总经理非常健康；他们都很有韧劲，是天生的领导者）。

任何稍微超越我们的能力的工作都会引起紧张，伴随而来的是高血压，免疫力下降，心

血管疾病的患病机率的增加。但是，养育孩子也紧张。失业真的很紧张。度假也可能紧张。

在米兰开汽车更是一场恶梦。

问题在于，看看那幅图画，无论愿意与否，不工作总比工作更糟糕。这一点一直是对的，

但是现在随着性别角色的变化，这一常理也有些难以解释了。

成功的回报

工作对男人有利——尤其是条件合适时更是如此。例如——当然这并不适合那些社会平

等主义者——娶了一位“家庭主妇型”妻子的男人有更大的可能在事业上不断得到提拔。这是

《康纳尔大学退休和康乐研究》得出的结论，这份研究同时也发现反之亦然：男人娶了有全

职工作的妻子，其事业也更加可能走下坡路。从其他的资料中我们了解到，一位成功的和有

成就的男人是健康和欢乐的人。

近来苏格兰有一份研究也表明，性别角色的变化对男人工作生涯有影响。研究人员指出，

有全职和兼职工作的妇女人数的增加，很可能与自杀和心情抑郁的男人数目的不断增加有间

接关系，至少在英伦诸岛是如此。对于男人来说，失去作为家庭唯一供养者的地位，以及意

识到丧失了社会地位，可能是抑郁症的危险因素。

家庭生活也会影响到男人从工作中获得的利益。有了孩子以后，特别是有了一个男孩之后，

美国男人的工作时间就要延长。

华盛顿大学的心理学家和经济学教授谢里?兰贝尔说，“我们只能猜测，有了一个儿子对

男人来说增添了婚姻和家庭的价值。”他根据“美国收入动因的访问调查”的数据，发现第一

个儿子的出生会导致男人平均每年增加了84小时的工作时间——相当于增加了两个星期的

工作。有了女儿之后男人只增加了31小时的工作。他们还发现了一种“父亲奖励”，使得男

人每生一个孩子都会增加大约５%的小时工资。

退休

研究一再表明，一个在职的有家室的男人的可支配收入越多，则越幸福，越健康。

还不相信？研究退休的人们的一些发现，进一步说明了不要退休的理由。首先，刚退休

的男人比没有退休的男人会遇到更多的家庭冲突。你的夫人会很紧张地担心你是否被高尔夫

球击中头部，或者喝酒过量落水飘在海上。

好消息是你还可以重新获得退休而产生的损失——重新回去工作。康纳尔大学心理学家

荣格默恩?科?基默和菲莉斯?摩恩发现，退休的男人一旦决定重新工作时，他们又重获得新

生。

基默认为，“退休后再就职对他们的心理健康有好处。”那些退休后又重新工作的人们感

觉士气高昂，很少有沮丧的心情。而那些退休后没有重新工作的男人们则感觉精神消沉，心

情极其沮丧。

他们对534名已婚的在50岁和74岁之间的男人和妇女的研究发现，工作状况对精神

和抑郁的影响是不分年龄、收入和健康的。

因此，加劲干吧，朋友，并且设法一直干到你躺下为止。延年益寿的药方之一就是工作。