看他不爽的時候，先去看場電影吧！

One of the great divides in male-female relationships is the “chick flick” — movies like “Terms of Endearment” and “The Notebook” that often leave women in tears and men bored. But now, a fascinating new study shows that sappy relationship movies made in Hollywood can actually help strengthen relationships in the real world.

男女關(guān)系中一道涇渭分明的界限是所謂“女性電影”——比方說《母女情深》(Terms of Endearment)和《戀戀筆記本》(The Notebook)這樣的電影往往會讓女人熱淚盈眶，讓男人百無聊賴。不過現(xiàn)在，一個極為有趣的新研究表明，好萊塢制作的多愁善感的情感片，事實上真的可以在現(xiàn)實生活中幫助增進戀人間的關(guān)系。

A University of Rochester study found that couples who watched and talked about issues raised in movies like “Steel Magnolias” and “Love Story” were less likely to divorce or separate than couples in a control group. Surprisingly, the “Love Story” intervention was as effective at keeping couples together as two intensive therapist-led methods.

羅切斯特大學(xué)(University of Rochester)的一項研究發(fā)現(xiàn)，伴侶們觀看像《鋼木蘭花》(Steel Magnolias)或《愛情故事》(Love Story)這類電影，并討論電影中提出的種種話題，相比對照組的伴侶，較少出現(xiàn)離婚或分居。尤其讓人驚訝的是，看《愛情故事》對情感進行干預(yù)，與兩次由治療師主導(dǎo)的強化婚姻輔導(dǎo)同樣有效。

The findings, while preliminary, have important implications for marriage counseling efforts. The movie intervention could become a self-help option for couples who are reluctant to join formal therapy sessions or could be used by couples who live in areas with less access to therapists.

這雖然是一項初期研究，但對于婚內(nèi)咨詢有著重要的意義。對于那些不愿參加正式治療，或者所在地區(qū)沒有多少婚姻治療師的夫婦來說，電影干預(yù)法可以作為一種自助手段。

“A movie is a nonthreatening way to get the conversation started,” said Ronald D. Rogge, an associate professor of psychology at the University of Rochester and the lead author of the study. “It’s really exciting because it makes it so much easier to reach out to couples and help them strengthen their relationships on a wide scale.”

“看電影可以在不那么駭人的情況下，讓大家展開對話，”羅切斯特大學(xué)心理學(xué)副教授、本研究的第一作者羅納德·羅格(Ronald D. Rogge)說，“在電影的幫助下，夫妻雙方可以十分輕松地敞開心扉，鞏固關(guān)系，這個發(fā)現(xiàn)真是讓人十分振奮。”

The initial goal of the study was to evaluate two types of therapist-led interventions called CARE and PREP. The CARE method focuses on acceptance and empathy in couples counseling, while PREP is centered on a specific communication style that couples use to resolve issues. The researchers wanted a third option that allowed couples to interact but did not involve intensive counseling.

這項研究的最初目的是評估兩種由治療師主導(dǎo)的干預(yù)方式，分別為CARE和PREP。CARE把重點放在夫妻咨詢的接受度和共情心上面，而PREP則集中于夫妻用來解決問題的特定溝通技巧。研究人員想要找到第三種選項，能在不接受強化輔導(dǎo)的情況下讓夫妻間互動。

They came up with the movie intervention, assigning couples to watch five movies and to take part in guided discussions afterward. A fourth group of couples received no counseling or self-help assignments and served as a control group.

他們因此想出了這種電影干預(yù)法，前三組夫妻或觀看五部電影，或參加由他人引導(dǎo)的討論。第四組則是對照組，既沒有接受輔導(dǎo)，也沒有得到自助任務(wù)。

Going into the study, the researchers expected that the CARE and PREP methods would have a pronounced effect on relationships and that the movie intervention might result in some mild improvements to relationship quality. To their surprise, the movie intervention worked just as well as both of the established therapy methods in reducing divorce and separation.

在研究開始前，研究人員本以為CARE和PREP干預(yù)法可以在夫妻關(guān)系中起到顯著效果，而電影干預(yù)法可能會對夫妻關(guān)系的質(zhì)量產(chǎn)生微弱的改善。令他們驚訝的是，電影干預(yù)法在減少離婚和分居方面，跟前兩種已經(jīng)為人們所認(rèn)可的治療方法同樣有效。

Among 174 couples studied, those who received marriage counseling or took part in the movie intervention were half as likely to divorce or separate after three years compared with couples in the control group who received no intervention. The divorce or separation rate was 11 percent in the intervention groups, compared with 24 percent in the control group.

三年后，在參加研究的174對夫妻中，接受婚姻咨詢或電影干預(yù)的夫妻離婚或分居的可能性，是未接受任何干預(yù)的對照組夫妻的一半。在干預(yù)組中離婚或分居率為11%，而對照組為24%。

Dr. Rogge and senior author Thomas N. Bradbury, a director of the Relationship Institute at the University of California, Los Angeles, published the findings in the December issue of The Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology.

這篇研究發(fā)現(xiàn)在去年12月的《咨詢與臨床心理學(xué)學(xué)刊》(The Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psycology)上，作者是羅格和加州大學(xué)洛杉磯分校的伴侶關(guān)系研究所主任托馬斯·布拉德布里(Thomas N. Bradbury)。