我們生活在一個過度擁擠的地球上，人口迅速增長，總數接近80億人。盡管如此，許多人還是感到孤獨或生活處境孤立。英國廣播公司展開了一項有關孤獨的調查，參與這項調查的5.5萬人來自世界各地近240個國家。本集節目分析這項 “孤獨調查” 的結果。

Vocabulary: loneliness 詞匯 : 孤獨

How lonely are you? Sometimes living alone or being in a remote location with nobody around to talk to can give you the feeling of despair and isolation. It's not a great feeling. There's a common stereotype that it's something that affects older people more, but research has found that loneliness is something that can affect us all, whatever our age.

There's a familiar phrase that says it's possible to be lonely in a crowd – despite being surrounded by hundreds of people, you think you have nobody to talk to or to connect with and that nobody wants to listen to you anyway. It's probably not true, but loneliness is seen as a big problem for the mental health of the population wherever they live - so much so that the British government even has a minister for loneliness.

The BBC recently completed a survey about the topic and it found that people aged between 16 and 24 experience loneliness more often and more intensely than any other age group. Researchers from the University of Manchester who analysed the data, suggested feeling lonely may plague the young because it's a time of identity change - figuring out your place in the world and of learning to regulate emotions.

Psychology lecturer and BBC presenter Claudia Hammond says that "it's tempting to conclude that something about modern life is putting young people at a higher risk of loneliness, but when we asked older people in our survey about the loneliest times in their lives, they also said it was when they were young."

The issue is certainly being talked about more. And in the UK, the Minister for Loneliness Tracey Crouch has said that "the government now recognises loneliness as one of the biggest health challenges we face." She also said there needs to be a "national conversation" to end the stigma about admitting to feeling lonely.

The BBC Loneliness Experiment also found the type of culture you live in has implications for loneliness. People from cultures which tend to put a high value on independence, such as Northern Europe and the US, revealed they would be less likely to tell a colleague about their loneliness. But in cultures where extended family is often emphasised, such as in Southern Europe, Latin America, Asia and Africa, older women in particular were at lower risk of feeling lonely.

詞匯表

despair 絕望
isolation 孤獨，隔絕
stereotype 成見
lonely in a crowd 即使在熱鬧處，仍感孤獨
connect 建立聯系
mental health 精神健康狀態
experience 感受到，體會到
intensely 強烈地
plague 折磨，使苦惱
figure out 找到…
regulate emotions 控制、調節情緒
modern life 現代生活
health challenge 健康隱患
stigma 恥辱
implication 可能的影響
independence 獨立
extended family 大家庭

測驗與練習

1. 閱讀課文并回答問題。

1. According to the survey, which age range was most affected by loneliness?

2. True or false? There is more chance of feeling lonely if you live in a remote location.

3. What is thought to lead to loneliness among some young people?

4. Why might older women in Asia be at a lower risk of feeling lonely?

5. Which word used in the article means 'possible effects or results'?

2. 請在不參考課文的情況下完成下列練習。選擇一個意思合適的單詞填入句子的空格處。

1. Not being married and having a child no longer carries a ______ in certain societies today.

plague       stigma       stereotype       culture

2. Since Phil lost his job, he's been ______ how to pay for the new car he'd just bought.

figured out       figure out       figuring out       figuring up

3. We all had to work ______ to complete our assignments on time.

intensely       independence       stereotype       isolation

4. My mum had a feeling of ______ when she lost her purse and her keys to the house.

despairing       desperate       desperation       despair

5. The museum has got so busy we now have to ______ the number of people visiting at certain times.

plague       isolate       regulate       figure out

答案

1. 閱讀課文并回答問題。

1. According to the survey, which age range was most affected by loneliness?
The BBC survey found people aged between 16 and 24 experience loneliness more often and more intensely than any other age group.

2. True or false? There is more chance of feeling lonely if you live in a remote location.
False. It doesn't matter where you live – you can still feel lonely in a crowd.

3. What is thought to lead to loneliness among some young people?
Researchers from the University of Manchester suggested feeling lonely may affect the young because it's a time of identity change - figuring out their place in the world and of learning to regulate emotions.

4. Why might older women in Asia be at a lower risk of feeling lonely?
Research found having an extended family meant they were less likely to get lonely.

5. Which word used in the article means 'possible effects or results'?
Implications. "The BBC Loneliness Experiment interestingly, also found the type of culture you live in has implications for loneliness."

2. 請在不參考課文的情況下完成下列練習。選擇一個意思合適的單詞填入句子的空格處。

1. Not being married and having a child no longer carries a stigma in certain societies today.

2. Since Phil lost his job, he's been figuring out how to pay for the new car he'd just bought.

3. We all had to work intensely to complete our assignments on time.

4. My mum had a feeling of despair when she lost her purse and her keys to the house.

5. The museum has got so busy we now have to regulate the number of people visiting at certain times.