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There's more misery in people's lives today than a decade ago.
So says a new study on life's negatives from the University of Chicago's National Opinion Research Center， which conducts social science research for government agencies， educational institutions， non-profit organizations and private corporations.
The researchers surveyed 1，340 people about negative life events and found that the 2004 respondents had more troubles than those who were surveyed in 1991.
“The anticipation would have been that problems would have been down，” says Tom Smith， the study's author. He says good economic years during the '90s would have brought an expectation of fewer problems， not more.
Overall， the percentage who reported at least one significant negative life event increased from 88% to 92%. Most of the problems were related to increased incidents of illness and the inability to afford medical care； mounting bills； unemployment； and troubled romantic relationships.
On a more positive note， fewer of those surveyed reported having trouble with crime or the law.
The University of Chicago report is part of a larger study known as the larger General Social Survey， which is supported by the National Science Foundation and financed through grants .
Some of the problems outlined in the study were more complicated than just a single bad event. For instance， the inability to afford health care rose from 7% in 1991 to 11% in 2004. Those who said they lacked health insurance increased from 12% to 18%. On the romantic front， the percentage who reported breaking up with a steady partner doubled from 4% to 8%.
But people shouldn't despair even if there is trouble around them. Bad experiences don't necessarily make people unhappy， says Jonathan Haidt， an associate professor of psychology at the University of Virginia and author of the new book The Happiness Hypothesis.
He advises a three-point check-up on the state of personal relationships， the work environment and control over daily life， because improving those areas will boost happiness. |
如今，人們生活中的煩惱比十年前多了很多。
芝加哥大學國民心理研究中心所做的一項關於生活中消極因素的研究也表明了這一點。研究中心對政府部門、教育機構、非盈利性組織以及私人企業中的工作人員進行了社會科學調查。
研究人員對1340個人在生活中遇到的消極事件進行了調查，發現2004年被調查者的煩惱比1991年的要多。
研究報告的撰寫者湯姆·史密斯說，“按照我們的預測，煩惱應該比原來少才對。”他說，90年代經濟狀況好轉，這應該使人們的煩惱減少，而不是增多。
從整體上看，說自己至少有一件重大消極事件的人數比例從88%上升到了92%.大多數的煩惱是生病次數增多，無力支付醫療費用、失業以及愛情受挫。
值得慶倖的是，被調查對象中很少有人說自己的煩惱和犯罪或法律事件有關。
芝加哥大學的報告是大規模社會普查的一部分，社會普查由國家科學基金會支持，它的主要經費來源是政府撥款。
研究中列出的一些“煩惱”相當複雜，並不是某一件麻煩事。比如，無力支付保健費用的人數比例從1991年的7%增長到了2004年的11%.說自己沒有健康保險的人從12%上升到了18%.而和長期交往的伴侶分手的人數比例則翻了一番，從4%增至8%.
弗吉尼亞大學心理學副教授喬納森·哈德特說，即使有麻煩困擾，人們也不應該絕望。不幸的經歷不一定會讓人悲傷。喬納森·哈德特是新書《快樂假設說》的作者。
他建議對人際關係、工作環境和個人日常生活管理這三個方面加強重視，因為這些方面的改善會讓快樂“升值”。 | 
