评论
打印
Do you ever start a project and then think, "I just need to organize my desk first," or… "I should probably wash the dishes?"
你是否曾经开始了一个项目，然后想，“我只需要先整理办公桌，”或“我可能应该洗盘子？”
You might think that being neat and tidy is the best way to get stuff done.
你可能认为整洁是把工作完成的最佳方法。
But sometimes, it might actually be holding you back.
但有时，它可能会阻碍你。
Research suggests that, in some situations, being kind of a mess can actually have its perks.
研究表明，在某些情况下，一团糟其实也有好处。
So neat freaks, cover your eyes—let's take a look at the science of messiness.
洁癖们，闭上眼睛让我们看看混乱的科学。
For one, messy workspaces might not be the productivity-killers people make them out to be.
首先，凌乱的工作空间可能不是人们认为的高产者的工作环境。
In fact, if you're trying to be creative, a little clutter might even give you a boost.
事实上，如果你想有创意，一点杂乱甚至可能会激发你。
Scientists have actually put this to the test.
科学家们实际上已经对此进行过检验。
In a study published in the journal Psychological Science in 2013,
2013年，发表在《心理科学》期刊上的一项研究中，
researchers hypothesized that people working in neat, orderly environments would think more traditionally,
研究人员假设，在整洁有序的环境中工作的人，会以更传统的方式思考问题，
while people working in messy spaces would think more out of the box.
而在凌乱空间工作的人思维更加富有创造性。
So they set up an experiment with 48 participants.
所以，他们设立了一项有48名参与者参加的实验。
They put people in either an orderly or messy environment and gave them… a ping-pong ball.
他们把参与者安置在有序或混乱的环境中，然后给他们一个乒乓球。
Then, the researchers basically asked them to come up with creative uses for that ball.
随后，研究人员要求他们想出这个球的一些创造性用途。
Their answers didn't even have to be realistic.
他们的答案甚至不必符合实际。
They could say things like, "give it to a cat" or "saw it in half, and use it as a boat."
他们可以说“把它给猫”或“把它锯成两半，当作船用”。
Nothing was off the table.
什么都可以加以讨论。
By the end, participants across the two rooms came up with similar numbers of answers.
最后，两个房间的参与者得出了相似的答案。
But the quality was different.
但答案的质量存在差异。
A panel of blinded judges graded the answers on creativity.
由不知情的评判组成的小组，对答案的创造性评分。
And without knowing which was which,
在完全不知情的情况下，
the judges rated the answers from the messier room as significantly more creative than answers from the orderly room.
评委们认为处于凌乱房间的参与者，其给出的答案远比待在秩序井然的房间里的参与者的答案更富创意。
Score for the messy team!
环境混乱组得分！
There could be a good reason why that group was more creative, too.
有一个很好的理由，可以解释为什么这个小组也更富有创造力。
The authors suggest that an orderly space might put participants in a frame of mind where they're less likely to color outside of the lines.
作者建议，一个有序的空间可能会让参与者出现思维定势，他们不太可能发散思维。
In other words, they might see the rigid organization around them and then limit themselves to ideas that fit within that system.
换言之，他们可能会看到周围僵化的组织，然后将自己局限于适合该系统的想法。
On the other hand, people surrounded by mayhem might feel freer to do their own thing.
另一方面，被处于混乱环境中的人们，或许能更自由地做自己的事情。
And that's not the only evidence in favor of letting your neat side slip a little.
而这并不是唯一支持让环境变乱一点的证据。
Findings from a study published back in 2001 suggest that your urge to keep things tidy may actually distract you from your task.
2001年发表的一项研究结果表明，保持事物整洁的冲动实际上可能会分散你的注意力。
The researchers involved took a close look at the paper-processing strategies of two types of office workers they labeled as "filers" and "pilers."
参与调查的研究人员仔细观察了两类办公室工作人员的纸张处理策略，分别称之为“文件归档人”和“堆垛机”。
They looked at fifty workers in all.
他们一共观察了50名员工。
The filers looked at every document as it came in and filed it accordingly.
文件归档人查看了每一份文件，并据此归档。
The pilers were more chaotic and let papers pile up.
而堆垛机则更加混乱，文件堆积如山。
You know which one you are.
你知道自己是哪种。
The researchers expected the filers to be the more efficient workers.
研究人员预期文件归档人更有效率。
But the results went completely against their hypothesis.
但结果与他们的假设背道而驰。
They found that even though filers were taking stock of everything as it came in and categorizing it for easy access,
他们发现，尽管文件归档人会对拿到的所有内容进行清点，并分类，以便于查找，
they ended up saving much more junk than the pilers, and looked at the things they saved less frequently.
但他们最后比堆垛机型员工保存了更多无价值的东西，也更少地查看保存的文件。
In the end, the filers seemed more worried about keeping their desk clean than keeping their workflow on track.
最后，文件归档人似乎更担心要让办公桌保持干净，而不是保持工作流程正常。
If a paper came in, they filed it away to keep their workspace tidy, even if that document wasn't really that useful.
如果有文件来，他们就把它归档，以保持工作区整洁，即使那份文件并没用。
And, in general, since it takes so much effort to create and maintain a filing system, filers are less eager to go back in and clear everything out.
总的来说，由于创建和维护归档系统需要付出很大的努力，所以文件归档人不太愿意再回去把所有东西都清除掉。
So they end up with well-organized, useless papers… forever.
所以，他们最终得到了组织良好、无用的文件。
Just the thought of sorting through years of filing might make you want to schedule a vacation ASAP… but sometimes, that isn't the best idea.
一想到要整理多年的文件，你可能会想尽快安排一个假期。但有时，这不是最好的主意。
It turns out that people who schedule their leisure time too strictly actually enjoy it less.
事实证明，那些把休闲时间安排得过于严格的人，实际上享受到的假期快乐更少。
In 2016, an article published in the Journal of Marketing Research looked at thirteen studies related to scheduling leisure time.
2016年，《市场研究期刊》上发表的一篇文章，考察了13项与安排闲暇时间相关的研究。
And the researchers found that just the act of scheduling an activity actually put kind of a downer on things.
研究人员发现，仅仅是安排活动的行为，就能让事情变得有点沮丧。
People who neatly planned out their activities anticipated them less and enjoyed them less overall.
那些精心安排活动的人，对活动的预期较低，对活动的整体享受感也较低。
The study's authors think that might be because when you schedule something, you have to worry about all sorts of things
该研究的作者们认为，这可能是因为当你安排事情时，必须担心各种各样的情况，
—figuring out the time, the place, who's coming, who's not coming—and it can kind of start to feel like work.
比如时间、地点、哪些人来、哪些人不来，这可能会让你感觉像是在工作。
Even a spontaneous get-together can lose its spark if you try to structure it too much.
即使是非筹划安排的聚会，如果你试图精心组织，也会失去乐趣。
Like, just having a mental note that "Okay, first we're going to dinner,
比如，只要在脑子里记下“好，我们先去进晚餐，
and then we're going to see a movie" can be less fun than going out, painting the town red, and seeing where the night takes you.
然后去看电影”就比一起出去，把小镇漆成红色，看看夜晚能带给你什么显得无趣一些。
As a result, researchers suggest scheduling a general timeframe for relaxing,
因此，研究人员建议制定令人放松的一般性时间范围，
rather than strictly scheduling all of your so-called free time.
而不是严格地安排所有空闲时间。
So if organization just isn't your forte, you might be alright.
所以，如果组织不是你的强项，可能没什么关系。
A little mess and chaos in your life might just be doing you some favors.
生活中的些许混乱可能只是帮了你一些忙。
Thanks for watching this episode of SciShow Psych!
感谢收看本期《心理科学秀》！
And a special thank you to our patrons for making episodes like this possible.
特别感谢我们的赞助人，使我们制作出这样的节目。
You all are part of an amazing community helping make education free on the internet, and we couldn't do it without you.
你们都是这个令人惊叹的社区的中一员，这个社区旨在帮助在互联网上实现免费教育。没有你们，我们无法做到这一点。
If you're interested in being part of this community, you can find out more at patreon.com/scishow.
如果你有兴趣加入这个社区，可以访问patreon.com/scishow网站。
