八卦的科学(以及为什么每个人都会八卦)

八卦的科学(以及为什么每个人都会八卦)

People feed off gossip. It's one reason why, in the 1960s, the National Enquirer swapped the gory, gruesome headlines they were known for with celebrity scoops and scandal.

人们喜欢八卦。这就是为什么在20世纪60年代，《国家询问报》用名人独家新闻和丑闻取代他们所知道的血腥、可怕的头条新闻的原因之一。

Social scientists have found that everyone is hardwired to pay attention to gossip, and to participate in it. In fact, it's an evolutionary adaptation.

社会科学家发现，每个人都会关注八卦，并参与其中。事实上，这是一种进化适应。

McAndrew, an expert on human social behavior and gossip, explains that to thrive in the time of cavemen, we had to know what was happening with the people around us.

麦克安德鲁是人类社会行为和八卦方面的专家，他解释说，要想在穴居人的时代茁壮成长，我们必须了解周围的人发生了什么。

"Who is sleeping with whom? Who has power? Who has access to resources? And if you weren't good at that, you weren't very successful," he said.

“谁跟谁睡觉?”谁有权力?谁有权使用资源?如果你在这方面做得不好，你就不会很成功。”他说。

Gossip generally has a negative connotation, especially when you think about hurtful rumors and a person's right to privacy.

八卦通常有负面的含义，尤其是当你想到有害的谣言和一个人的隐私权时。

But in everyday life, researchers say, our chatter about other people tends to be relatively boring and neutral and serves its own unique purpose.

但研究人员说，在日常生活中，我们谈论别人往往是相对无聊和中立的，有其独特的目的。

52 minutes of gossip a day

每天52分钟的八卦时间

Most researchers define gossip as talking about someone who isn't present and sharing information that isn't widely known.

大多数研究人员将八卦定义为谈论不在场的人以及分享不为人知的信息。

And according to an analysis by researchers at the University of California Riverside, the average person spends 52 minutes every day doing exactly that.

根据加州大学河滨分校研究人员的一项分析，每个人每天平均花52分钟八卦。

Yet the majority of our gossip is harmless. About 15% of our gabbing involves negative judgment -- or what researchers call "evaluative" -- but outside of that, the average person is just stating facts, such as "she's stuck late at work," or "he had to go to the hospital."

然而，我们大多数的八卦是无害的。在我们的闲聊中，约有15%的八卦涉及消极的判断——也就是研究人员称之为“评价性的”——但除此之外，一般人只是在陈述事实，比如“她工作到很晚”或“他必须去医院”。

This kind of neutral chitchat actually helps us build friendships, community or learn information that's vital for having a social life, said Megan Robbins, a UC Riverside psychology professor.

加州大学河滨分校的心理学教授梅根·罗宾斯说，这种中性的闲聊实际上有助于我们建立友谊、建立社区，或者了解对社交生活至关重要的信息。

Everyone gossips -- and it's not all bad

每个人都会八卦，但也不全是坏事

The practice becomespurely harmful when it doesn't provide any opportunity for social learning, scientists say, such as with rude comments about someone's appearance or health and comments that are blatantly untrue.

科学家说，这种做法如果没有提供任何社会学习的机会，比如对某人的外貌或健康做出粗鲁的评论，以及公然不真实的评论，那么它就变得纯粹有害。

Where judgmental or negative gossip can be useful is when it provides cultural learning and compels people to behave better.

判断性的或负面的八卦可能有用的地方是，它提供了文化学习，并迫使人们表现得更好。

Robbins said there is compelling research that gossip might serve as a check on people's moral behavior, deterring potential cheaters or slackers in a group setting because we care about our reputations and the risk of others gossiping about our bad decisions.

罗宾斯说，有一项令人信服的研究表明，八卦可以用来检查人们的道德行为，阻止群体中潜在的骗子或偷懒者，因为我们关心自己的声誉，也担心别人会八卦我们的错误决定。

It can also be a way to figure out unwritten rules. For example, when we start a new job, the water cooler talk helps us find out what is acceptable office attire, who we might want to avoid working with on a team project, and whether it's acceptable to take a monthlong vacation.

它也可以是一种找出不成文规则的方法。例如，当我们开始一份新工作时，茶水间的闲聊可以帮助我们了解什么是可以接受的办公室着装，在团队项目中我们可能不想与谁一起工作，以及是否可以接受休一个月的假。

Why do we care about celebrities?

我们为什么要关心名人?

Humans are hardwired to care about the lives of people who are friends, foes or family. Researchers call those people "socially important." But why do we care about famous people we've never actually met?

人类天生就关心朋友、敌人或家人的生活。研究人员称这些人具有“重要的社会地位”。但我们为什么要关心那些我们从未见过的名人呢?

This is especially true today thanks to the internet and social media, which meanswe know a lot about people we don't actually know. Being privy to that information tricks our brains into thinking celebrities are socially important to our lives. One of McAndrew's studies showed that we even gravitate toward celebrity tabloid stories about people of the same gender and age group.

这在今天尤其如此，这要归功于互联网和社交媒体，这意味着我们对自己不认识的人了解很多。了解这些信息会让我们的大脑误以为名人对我们的生活具有重要的社会意义。麦克安德鲁的一项研究表明，我们甚至会被有关相同性别和年龄的名人小报所吸引。

Celebrity gossip also gives us common ground with others. Pop culture knowledge gives us something to talk about during those awkward small talk encounters or at parties where we don't know many people.

名人八卦也让我们和别人有了共同点。流行文化知识让我们在尴尬的闲聊中或在不认识很多人的聚会上有话题可谈。