与陌生人聊天 Talking to strangers丨随身英语
21
1-2020
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我们中的许多人每天都有一部分时间被陌生人包围着，无论是在上下班的路上，还是坐在公园或咖啡馆里……但他们和我们只保持着陌生人的关系。然而，新的研究证据表明，与新认识的人开始一段对话可能对健康大有益处。本文讨论与陌生人交谈的好处。
"It's good to talk," so some people say. When I commute into London, there are certainly plenty of people conversing on their mobile phones — sometimes too loudly — discussing and sharing personal details with a friend. For me, it's strange that they talk as though the person is sitting next to them, when they don't even acknowledge the person who is actually sitting beside them.
Many of us spend part of each day surrounded by strangers, whether on our daily commute, or sitting in a park or a cafe. But most of them remain just that — strangers. However, new evidence has shown that plucking up the courage to strike up a conversation might be good for our health.
Nicholas Epley from the University of Chicago and Juliana Schroeder from the University of California are behavioural scientists. They looked at this silent relationship and whether solitude is a more positive experience than interacting with strangers, or if people misunderstand the consequences of distant social connections.
They found that many people feel uncomfortable and intimidated talking to others and their research suggested that when we make an initial conversation "we consistently underestimate how much a new person likes us". It seems we carry a negative voice in our head telling us all the things that could go wrong and why someone wouldn't want to converse with us.
Their research involved an experiment with a group of Chicago commuters and found that "every participant in our experiment who actually tried to talk to a stranger found the person sitting next to them was happy to chat". From this and other research, the conclusion is that connecting with strangers is surprisingly pleasant and it has a positive impact on our wellbeing.
Gillian Sandstrom, a social psychologist from Essex University in the UK, told the BBC that "people are in a better mood after they reach out and have a conversation, however minimal". It's true that talking can make you feel happier and happiness can lead to better mental health.
However, if you're an introvert, the thought of speaking to someone new might make you anxious. But the American research found "both extroverts and introverts are happier when they are asked to behave in an extroverted manner".
So maybe, if you're a loner, it's time to come out of your shell and make some small talk with a stranger — it could be the beginning of a new friendship.
词汇表
converse
交谈，对话
pluck up the courage
鼓起勇气
strike up
开始（交谈）
solitude
独处
interact
交往，交流
social connections
社会关系
uncomfortable
不舒服的，难受的
intimidated
发怵的，害怕的
underestimate
低估
negative voice
（头脑里）负面的声音，消极的思想
chat
聊天
connect with
与……建立良好的关系
wellbeing
健康
mood
心情
introvert
性格内向的人
anxious
焦虑的
extrovert
性格外向的人
come out of your shell
变得不再自闭，融入外部世界
(make) small talk
闲聊，寒暄
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