常說這些詞的人可能患了抑郁癥

Feeling down? Pay attention to your language.

心情不好?請注意一下自己說話的用詞偏好。

Language changes significantly in both content and word choice in people who are depressed, according to a growing body of research using computer programs to analyze speech and writing.

據(jù)越來越多使用計算機程序來分析口頭語和書面語的研究顯示，抑郁癥患者在內(nèi)容表達的方式和措辭上，都會較患病前發(fā)生顯著變化。

People who are depressed tend to use the pronoun"I" more, indicating a greater focus on self. Theyalso use "absolute" words like "must," "completely," "should" or "always," reflecting an overlyblack-or-white outlook.

他們往往用第一人稱代詞“我”比較多，這表明他們對自我關(guān)注較多。此外，他們還常用“必須”、“完全”、“應(yīng)該”或“總是”這樣的“絕對詞”來反映非黑即白的觀點。

Scientists have long known that people change how they speak when they are depressed -- their speech becomes lower, more monotone and more labored, with more stops, starts and
pauses. But newer studies, including several published this year, have found differences in the
actual words depressed people use.

科學(xué)家很早就知道，人們在抑郁后會改變說話方式--音量變低、語調(diào)單一、講話費力，并且出現(xiàn)更多說說停停和躊躇不言的情況。而最新研究發(fā)現(xiàn)(包括今年發(fā)布的幾項研究)，抑郁癥患者的用詞也不太一樣。

People who are depressed "don't see subtleties, and we can see this in the words they use," says James W. Pennebaker, professor of psychology at the University of Texas at Austin, who
studies how language relates to a person's psychological state.

研究人們語言與心理狀態(tài)關(guān)系的德克薩斯大學(xué)奧斯汀分校心理學(xué)教授詹姆斯·W·佩尼貝克稱，抑郁癥患者“看不到微妙差異，這一點我們可以從他們的措辭上看出來。”

The study of computer-assisted language analysis for depression is still a nascent field, but
apps and other technology that track language could eventually help doctors and patients
identify a depressive episode more quickly.

針對抑郁癥的計算機化語言分析研究目前仍處于起步階段，但跟蹤語言的應(yīng)用程序和其他技術(shù)最終可能會幫助醫(yī)生和患者更快地確定這是否預(yù)示著罹患抑郁癥。

Since there are no biological markers for depression as there are for cancer and other
diseases, therapists currently have to rely on a patient's self-reported symptoms and on their
own analysis to diagnose the disorder. Both can be highly subjective.

因為抑郁癥不像癌癥和其他疾病一樣有生物標記物，所以治療師目前在診斷抑郁癥時，不得不依賴患者對癥狀的自述和治療師自己的分析判斷，而這兩者都可能過于主觀。

The apparent suicides of designer Kate Spade and chef Anthony Bourdain last week
underscore just how challenging it can be to identify and treat depression.

設(shè)計師凱特·絲蓓和名廚安東尼·波爾登的自殺事件就凸顯出識別和治療抑郁癥的難度。

In research published online in March in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, researchers at the Universities of Arizona, Zurich and Texas, as well as Michigan State and
Georgia Southern, gave questionnaires designed to measure depression to more than 4,700 people at six labs in the U.S. and Germany.

今年3月份在線發(fā)表在《人格與社會心理學(xué)雜志》上的一份研究顯示，亞利桑那大學(xué)、蘇黎世大學(xué)、德克薩斯大學(xué)以及密歇根州立大學(xué)和佐治亞南方大學(xué)的研究人員在美國和德國的六個實驗室里對4700余人做了抑郁調(diào)查問卷。

Participants were asked to write about their lives, a recent relationship breakup, their level of
satisfaction with life, or just their general thoughts and feelings. Then software analyzed their
language.

問卷要求參與者用文字描述自己的生活、最近一段情感關(guān)系的破裂、對生活的滿意度，或只是一般性的想法和感受。然后，研究人員用軟件分析他們的文字。

The results: In addition to using more negative, or sad, words, people who were depressed
used more first-person pronouns or "I-talk" than people who were not depressed.

結(jié)果發(fā)現(xiàn)，除用了更多消極或悲傷的詞語外，抑郁者比沒有抑郁的人用了更多的第一人稱代詞“我”。

Pronouns show where a person is focusing attention, says Dr. Pennebaker, who is an author on the study. Someone who is really interested in another person will use the third person "he" or"she." Someone closely focused on a relationship will use "we."

這份研究的作者佩尼貝克博士說，從人稱代詞上可以看出一個人的關(guān)注焦點。一個人若對另一個人真正感興趣，會使用第三人稱“他”或“她”。重點關(guān)注情感關(guān)系的人會使用“我們”。

"But if you are thinking about yourself—if you are more self-conscious or self-aware, as depressed people are—you will use the first-person singular 'I' or 'me,'" Dr. Pennebaker says.

佩尼貝克教授表示：“但是如果你在想著自己，像抑郁癥患者一樣具有較重的自我意識，你會用第一人稱單數(shù)‘我'”。

Depressed people also tend to view the world in a concrete, black-or-white way, using wordssuch as "must," "completely," "should" or "always" that express absolutist thinking, as shown ina series of three studies published together in Clinical Psychological Science in January.

今年1月份發(fā)表在《臨床心理科學(xué)》上的三項系列研究顯示，抑郁者還傾向于以具體的、非黑即白的方式來看待世界，用“必須”、“完全”、“應(yīng)該”或“總是”這樣的詞來表達絕對化的想法。

The researchers, from the University of Reading in the U.K., used software to calculate thepercentage of absolutist words used in messages by approximately 6,400 members ofinternet forums for depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation and a host of control forums.

英國雷丁大學(xué)的研究人員用軟件計算了約6400名互聯(lián)網(wǎng)論壇成員在所發(fā)消息中使用絕對詞的比例，這些論壇包括抑郁、焦慮、自殺意念論壇和一系列對照組論壇。

They found that approximately 1.5% of words used by people in the depression and anxietyforums were absolutist—which was 50% more than those used by people in the controlforums. The percentage was even higher for people in the suicidal ideation forums: about 1.8%.

他們發(fā)現(xiàn)，抑郁癥和焦慮癥論壇上絕對詞的出現(xiàn)頻率約為1.5%，比對照組論壇高出50%。絕對詞在自殺意念論壇中出現(xiàn)的比例甚至高達1.8%左右。

Why are absolutist words so bad? People often don't realize they are using them, and they canamp up negative thoughts. (Think about having your barbecue rained out. Saying "this alwayshappens" is a much harsher thought than "sometimes the weather is unpredictable in June.") Absolutist words also require that the world correspond to your view. ("I must get thatpromotion." "My children must behave.")

為什么使用絕對詞會如此糟糕?人們通常沒有意識到自己在用這些詞，而實際上這些詞可以放大頭腦里的消極想法。(譬如，你的燒烤野餐因雨取消，說“總是這樣”的人比說“6月的天氣有時就是沒法預(yù)料”的人要消極得多。)使用絕對詞的言下之意，是要求世界的運轉(zhuǎn)符合你的看法。(“那個升職機會必須是我的。”“我的孩子必須守規(guī)矩。”)

"If the world doesn't adhere to what you demand of it, that is when depression and anxietyset in," says Mohammed Al-Mosaiwi, a Ph.D. candidate in psychology at the University ofReading and lead author on the studies. The more flexible you are, the better, he says.

雷丁大學(xué)心理學(xué)博士學(xué)位候選人、上述研究的主要作者默罕默德·阿爾-莫賽維表示：“如果世界不按你的要求來，抑郁和焦慮就開始發(fā)作。”他說，一個人的想法越靈活越好。

Psychologists say people can use language as a tool to help them reframe their thoughts. "Veryoften, what you say is what you internalize," says Mr. Al-Mosaiwi. Here are some tips:

心理學(xué)家表示，人們可以把語言當作幫助自己重新組織想法的工具。阿爾-莫賽維說：“很多時候，你說出來的就是你藏在心底的東西。”以下是幫助你做出改變的一些小貼士：

Remember that the actual words you say matter, not just the thoughts they convey. Even ifyou are unable to replace negative words with positive ones, try replacing them with moreaccurate neutral ones. Instead of: "This party is horrible," try "This event is not for me."

記住，不光是你的想法重要，用來表達想法的措辭也很重要。哪怕你沒辦法把消極字眼換成積極的，也應(yīng)該盡量使用更準確的中性詞。比如，你可以試著說，“這個活動不適合我”，而不是說，“這個派對太可怕了”。

Banish absolutes, especially in relation to your goals or relationships, where falling short of yourexpectations can be particularly depressing. These words and phrases include: always, never, nothing, must, every, totally, completely, constantly, entirely, all, definitely, full and one-hundred percent. Replace them with nuance. Instead of: "I can never catch a break," try"Sometimes things don't work out."

摒棄絕對詞，特別是在描述人生目標或情感關(guān)系時，因為在這兩種情況下，達不到期望值可能會令人特別沮喪。這些絕對詞包括：總是、永不、毫無、必須、每個、統(tǒng)統(tǒng)、徹底、一直、完全、所有、絕對、全部和百分百。不妨“偷梁換柱”，用別的詞代替。不要講“我永遠都不會交好運”，試著說 “事情有時就是不湊巧。”

Write. Keep a journal. Try a stream-of-consciousness writing exercise. Compose an email toa friend. Then analyze what words you are using. Are they too negative or absolutist? All aboutyou? Tweak those sentences—and stay vigilant for those words in your speech.

動筆寫?？梢杂浫沼洠瑖L試一種意識流的寫作練習(xí)。給朋友寫電子郵件，分析自己的用詞，是否太消極、太絕對?是否滿篇都在講自己?調(diào)整這些句子，對自己說話時用的字眼保持警惕。

Ask a loved one to help you identify absolutist or negative words or sentences and suggestreframing. It is easier to notice someone else's language than our own.

請你愛的人幫你找出絕對詞或帶有負面情緒的詞語、句子，提出修改建議。糾察別人的語言比糾察我們自己的要容易。

Create a mantra you can use to override absolutist language. So instead of saying "This alwayshappens to me," say "This time. This happened this time."

創(chuàng)造一個可以替代絕對詞的專屬口頭禪。不要說“我總是碰上這種事”，而要說“這次讓我碰上了，僅這次而已。”

Put your mantra on sticky notes and place them where you can see them. Make it your screensaver. Have a needlepoint pillow made.

可以把口頭禪寫在便利貼上，再把便利貼放在你可以看到的地方。還可以把這句口頭禪做成屏保，或縫在靠墊上。

Pay attention to your use of the word "I." If most of your sentences have "I" or "me" in them, you are probably too self-focused, says Dr. Pennebaker.

注意“我”這個詞的出現(xiàn)頻率。佩尼貝克說，如果你在談話時總是“我我我”，很可能說明你過于關(guān)注自己了。