評論員文章

一項長期研究發現，表演藝術家的創造力和童年經歷存在聯系——童年不幸者（如被虐待、被忽視、家庭不和睦）更富創造力。

Psychologists at California State University, Northridge, studied 234 professional performers, looking for a reason why mental health disorders are so common in the performing arts.

美國加州州立大學北嶺分校的心理學家調查了234名專業表演家，尋找表演藝術家心理健康問題頻發的原因。

"The notion that artists and performing artists suffered more pathology, including bipolar disorder, troubled us," psychologist Paula Thomson, a co-author on the new study, told Psypost.

這項新研究的作者之一、心理學家寶拉·湯姆森告訴Psypost網站說：“藝術家和表演家更容易患上躁郁癥等心理疾病，這讓我們感到困擾。”

The study examined 83 actors, directors, and designers; 129 dancers; and 20 musicians and opera singers. These study participants filled out self-report surveys pertaining to childhood adversity, sense of shame, creative experiences, proneness to fantasies, anxiety, and level of engagement in an activity.

該研究調查了83名演員、導演和設計師、129名舞者、20名音樂家和歌劇演唱家。這些參與者填寫了有關童年不幸、羞恥感、創作體驗、幻想傾向、焦慮和活動參與度的自陳報告。

The study found that, compared to the original Adverse Childhood Experiences study conducted back in 1998 on 9,508 adults, performing artists as a group reported a higher level of childhood emotional abuse and neglect.

1998年，研究人員探究過9508位成年人的童年不幸經歷。他們對比兩項研究結果后發現，相較于普通人，表演藝術家在童年期經歷精神虐待和忽視的幾率更高。

The participants were able to be categorised into three groups: those who reported a high level of childhood adversity; those who had experienced a lower or medium level; and those who had experienced little to none.

這回，研究人員根據童年不幸程度，將調查對象分為三組：高程度（非常不幸）、中低程度（比較不幸）、零程度（幾乎沒有經歷過不幸）。

It's the high-level group that demonstrated the greater extremes. These performing artists had much higher anxiety, much more internalised shame, and reported more cumulative past traumatic events. They were also more prone to fantasies.

研究發現，高程度組情況最極端。這些表演藝術家明顯更焦慮、更具主觀羞恥感、經歷過更多創傷事件、更容易陷入幻想。

But they also seemed more connected with the creative process, the researchers said. They were more aware of it, and reported feeling more absorbed in it. They reported heightened awareness of a state of inspiration and a sense of discovery during the process.

但研究人員指出，同時，他們似乎也更富有創作力。他們更具創造意識，更容易沉浸其中。他們更常迸發靈感，在創作過程中也更常發現新事物。

They were also able to move more easily between the state of absorption and a more distant state for critical awareness, and were more receptive to art.

此外，他們能夠更輕松地在“沉浸其中”和“跳脫出來進行批判”這兩種狀態之間進行切換，對藝術的接受能力也更強。

"Lastly," the researchers wrote, "[this] group identified greater appreciation for the transformational quality of creativity, in particular, how the creative process enabled a deeper engagement with the self and world. They recognised that it operated as a powerful force in their life."

研究人員寫道，“最后，這一人群更重視創造力的轉換特性——創作過程使他們和自我、和世界聯系更緊密。他們認為，創作是他們生活中的一股強大力量。”

Obviously the study has caveats, as self-reported studies can be prone to personal bias. Also, since it was limited to performing artists, comparisons couldn't easily be made with other subsets of the population.

顯然，這項研究存在一些缺陷。首先，自我報告法容易產生主觀偏差。其次，調查對象僅限于表演藝術家，結論未必適用于其他人群。

Nevertheless, the finding, the researchers said, may indicate that adult performers who have experienced childhood adversity are better able to recognise and value the creative process; and the ability of that group to enjoy the creative process could indicate resilience.

研究人員指出，結果顯示，童年不幸的表演藝術家更認可和重視創作過程，他們能享受創作過程或許也是他們適應生活的手段。

"We are saddened by the number of participants in our study who have suffered multiple forms of childhood adversity as well as adult assaults (both sexual and non-sexual)," Thomson told Psypost.

湯姆森告訴Psypost網站說：“參與我們研究的很多人童年時期都經歷過多種不幸和來自成年人的性侵或其他攻擊，這讓我們很傷感。”"So many participants in our sample have experienced poly-traumatization and yet they also embrace their passion for performance and creativity. They are embracing ways to express all that is human."

“我們采樣的對象中有這么多人經歷過多重精神創傷，但他們卻依然富有表演和創作的激情。他們努力用各種方式表達出人性的一切。”

The research has been published in the journal?Frontiers in Psychology.