年輕長壽的祕訣

Studies suggest that feeling younger may actually help you live to be older. Now, new research points to a way to keep that youthful state of mind, at least for elderly adults: feel in control.

研究表明，年輕的心態或能延長壽命。而今，新研究明確指出了保持年輕態的方法，至少能讓老年人感覺一切盡在掌控之中。

"On days when you felt more controlled for you - you tended to feel younger," says Jennifer Bellingtier, a postdoctoral psychology researcher at Friedrich Schiller University in Germany, of her findings, which she presented her research at the recent annual American Psychological Association (APA) convention (and which have not been published in a scientific journal).

"越能控制自己，越會讓你顯得年輕，"德國弗里德里希席勒大學（Friedrich Schiller University）的博士後心理研究員珍妮弗·貝林蒂爾說道。近期，她在美國心理學會年度大會上向大家展示了她的研究結果（尚未在科學期刊上發表）。

Bellingtier's research involved surveying 116 adults, ages 60 to 90, and 106 adults, ages 18 to 36, every day for nine days. Each time, participants were asked how old they felt that day, and how in-control of their life and actions they felt that day.

貝林蒂爾的研究對象爲116位60至90歲的成年人，106位18至36歲的成年人，研究持續開展9天。每一次，她都會問受試者今天感覺怎麼樣：有沒有感覺變老了？覺得自己對生活的掌控度如何？對當天的行爲有何感受？

Past research has shown that it's common to experience fluctuations in "subjective age," or how old you feel. That held true for the people in the study: both groups experienced changes in their subjective age from day to day. But in the older group, these fluctuations were correlated with feeling a sense of control, Bellingtier says. On days they felt more in control of their lives, people tended to feel younger. In the younger group of people, changes seemed to be tied to things like health and stress levels.

過去的研究表明：經歷"主觀年齡"或心態的波動是非常正常的事情。該項研究的受試者也是如此：每天，兩組人員都會經歷主觀年齡的變化。但對於老年組而言，這種波動是與控制感相關的，貝林蒂爾說道。對生活的掌控感更好，他們就會覺得自己更年輕。對於年輕組而言，變化似乎與健康和壓力水平相關。

The power of feeling in-control may be two-fold, Bellingtier says. A sense of agency may boost mental health and drive down subjective age, in turn motivating people to make healthy choices. "When you feel more controlled, you feel younger, and then you feel like you can accomplish more things," Bellingtier says. "You feel like your actions matter." This could motivate a person to get outside and exercise or to make better nutrition choices, she says.

感覺一切盡在掌控之中可能會帶來雙重影響。力量感會促進心理健康，拉低主觀年齡，從而激勵人們做出健康的選擇。"對事態的掌控力越大，你就會越年輕，從而覺得自己可以做更多事情，"貝林蒂爾說道。"你開始覺得自己的行爲很重要。"從而激勵人們去戶外鍛鍊，或做出更佳的營養選擇，她說道。

Both environmental and internal changes could enhance an older person's sense of control, Bellingtier says. A nursing home, for example, could allow residents to select their own food options and mealtimes, rather than mandating a set menu and dinnertime.

貝林蒂爾表示，環境和內部變化都會增強老年人的控制感。比如，療養院不會定好菜單和用餐時間，而是讓老人自行選擇食物和餐點。