Losing yourself in flow

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many people in lockdown felt lonely and bored. “There is a loneliness epidemic,” said John Dattilo, a professor at Pennsylvania State University, US.
新冠肺炎疫情流行期间，许多被隔离的人感到孤独、无聊。美国宾夕法尼亚州立大学教授约翰·达蒂洛说:“孤独成了一种流行病。”

Together with an international team of researchers, Dattilo studied how to reduce loneliness and increase positive feelings during the pandemic.
达蒂洛与一个国际研究团队共同研究了疫情期间如何减少孤独感，提振积极情绪。

According to their new study, reduced loneliness has something to do with doing enjoyable activities that require both concentration and skill.
根据该团队的新研究，减少孤独感与进行愉快的活动有关，这些活动需要我们全神贯注，施展技能。

“When people are absorbed in what they are doing, they enter a state called ‘flow’,” Dattilo explained. “Flow can be achieved by doing activities that we value and that require us to concentrate fully to use our skills.”
“人们专注于正在做的事情时，会进入一种叫做‘心流’的状态。” 达蒂洛解释说，“做一些我们重视的、需要充分集中精力施展技能的活动，可以达成心流。”

To achieve a state of flow, there must be a balance between the challenge of the task and your skill level. For example, if you’re trying to create a complex computer program but your skill level is low, then you’re likely to feel stressed instead of achieving flow. On the contrary, if the task is too easy, then boredom will set in and flow will not appear, either.
为了达到心流状态，必须平衡任务的挑战性和你自身的技能水平。例如，如果你试图编写一套复杂的计算机程序，但你的计算机水平很低，那么就可能会感到压力，而无法达成心流。相反，如果任务太简单，你就会产生厌倦感，也不会出现心流状态。

If you have artistic skills, for example, playing the piano or painting can lead to flow. So can things like skiing, writing and storytelling, depending on who you are.
如果你有诸如弹钢琴或绘画的艺术技能，那么可以达成心流。滑雪、写作、讲故事的技艺也可以，这取决于你的自身情况。

“When we enter a state of flow, we become absorbed and focused, and we experience momentary enjoyment,” Dattilo said. “When we leave a state of flow, we are often surprised by how much time has passed.”
“进入心流状态时，我们会变得专注，体验到片刻的快乐。” 达蒂洛说，“而离开心流状态后，我们常常会惊讶于时间的流逝。”

However, watching television usually doesn’t help people enter flow, according to Dattilo, because there aren’t any challenges.
然而，根据达蒂洛的说法，看电视通常无法让人进入心流状态，因其不具有任何挑战性。

“Loneliness is very connected to our health,” Dattilo explained. “Psychological, emotional, and cognitive health are all challenged when people are lonely. Loneliness is associated with depression and other mental health challenges.”
“孤独感与我们的健康息息相关，”达蒂洛解释道，“人们感到孤独时，心理、情感和认知健康都会遭受挑战。孤独感还与抑郁及其他心理健康问题有关。”

“People tend to thrive on healthy activities and challenge,” said Dattilo. “We hope this research will help people live fuller, happier, healthier lives.”
“健康的活动和挑战往往会令人焕发生机，”达蒂洛说，“我们希望心流的研究能帮助大家生活得更充实、快乐和健康。”

以上文章内容选自《21世纪学生英文报高中版》，详情请见《21世纪学生英文报高中版》高一869期