每一次大型社會問題的爆發(fā)，都伴隨著謠言四起，這一次新型冠狀病毒也不例外。即使受過嚴格心理學訓練的專業(yè)人員，一不小心也被誤導，進而再誤導了別人。這一次，筆者本著謹慎學習的態(tài)度，為了使大家學會辨別謠言，特此翻譯了一篇社會心理學博士的文章。最關鍵的是，在互聯網時代，教會大家Do not be Evil不作惡！
1、什么算作“謠言”？
What Counts as a “Rumor”?
首先，以社會心理學家的方式來定義“謠言”的含義。Nicholas DiFonzo和Prashant Bordia描述了謠言的四種基本特征：
Let’s start by defining what we mean by a “rumor” in the same way social psychologists have. Nicholas DiFonzo and Prashant Bordia describe four basic qualities of rumors:
它們是信息聲明。我們并不是在談論人們的觀點。相反，謠言是為了提供信息。
They are information statements. We’re not talking about the opinions that people share. Instead, rumors are meant to be informative.
他們在流通。換句話說，如果您有自己的個人陰謀論，認為月球不是真實的，那么從不告訴任何人也就不是謠言。
They are in circulation. In other words, if you have your own personal conspiracy theory that the moon isn’t real, it’s not a rumor if you never tell anyone.
他們未經驗證。這是關鍵。如果我正在參加一次高中同學聚會，并且嘗試傳播有關Jeff和Tina剛生下嬰兒的消息[1]，那么，如果Jeff和Tina將嬰兒的照片發(fā)布到Facebook上，這并不是謠言。是的，它提供了很多信息，并且正在發(fā)行中，但是由于已經被證實是正確的，因此從技術上講它不是謠言。
They are unverified. This is key. If I’m at a high school reunion, and I try to spread the news that Jeff and Tina just had a baby[1], that’s not a rumor if Jeff and Tina posted the baby’s picture to Facebook. Yes, it’s informative and in circulation, but since it’s been definitively verified as true, it’s not technically a rumor.
最后，謠言是“與工具相關的”。它們回答人們因重要性或因重要性而希望回答的問題。如果有傳言說您的辦公室要裁員，那將起到重要作用，因為這些信息會影響您的生活！有些人將謠言傳播為“集體感官活動”，因為它們可以幫助人們理解模棱兩可的情況。
Finally, rumors are “instrumentally relevant.” They answer questions that people want answered because they feel important or significant. If there’s a rumor that your office is laying people off, that’s instrumentally relevant because that information impacts your life! Some have called rumor spreading a “group sensemaking activity” because they serve to help people understand an ambiguous situation.
*如果您對謠言與“八卦” [2]和“城市傳說”有何不同感興趣，請參閱前兩個腳注！
*If you’re interested in how rumors are different from “gossip” [2] and “urban legends,”[3] see the previous two footnotes!
2、人們?yōu)楹紊⒉贾{言的心理學分析
The Psychology of Why People Spread Rumors
如果您一直在關注，則謠言的主要功能是弄清一些尚不清楚的內容。謠言有助于解釋這個令人困惑的世界。人們之間的緊張關系令人恐懼和困惑。“為什么發(fā)生壞事？”
If you’ve been paying attention, the primary function of a rumor is to make sense of something that’s already unclear. Rumors help explain a confusing element of the world. In the soda rumor I opened with, the tensions between groups of people are scary and confusing. “Why are bad things happening?”
這種混亂為謠言打開了大門，人們可以堅持不懈，以使他們至少對世界為何以其目前的方式運轉有所了解。
This confusion opens the door to rumors, which people can hold>some idea about why the world is working in the way that it is.
1947年，戈登·艾爾波特（GordonAllport）和里奧·郵差（Leo Postman）出版了《謠言心理學》一書。盡管在那個時期，謠言是社會心理學中一個非常熱門的話題，但是，更好地研究謠言變得越來越困難。但是，在過去的幾年中，人們對謠言的心理重新產生了興趣。這里是對該研究發(fā)現的簡要回顧。
In 1947, Gordon Allport and Leo Postman published the book, The Psychology of Rumor. Although rumors were a pretty hot topic in social psychology around that time, it got more and more difficult to study rumors well. In the last several years, however, there’s been a renewed interest in the psychology of rumor. Here’s a quick review of what that research has found.
大荔枝點評：認知上的不確定與困惑，情緒上的恐懼與焦慮為謠言提供了溫床。
據筆者分析，人們散步謠言的原因大概有以下幾種情況：
There are several reasons that the rumors spread by people as follows.
A. 人們在不確定的情況下散布謠言
People Spread Rumors When There’s Uncertainty
當我們還不完全了解世事如何或為什么發(fā)生的時候，謠言就開始散布了。如果您可以想象再次上初中，請想象如果有一天突然有一個同學停止上學會發(fā)生什么。那里存在很多不確定性，因此人們可能會散布謠言，以此來解釋所發(fā)生的事情。實際上，1955年的一次現場實驗就做到了這一點：研究人員策略性地在沒有解釋的情況下將一名學生從小學班級撤出。毫不奇怪，隨著學生試圖弄清情況，謠言開始泛濫。
It’s when we don’t already have a firm grasp>researchers strategically withdrew a student from a grade school class without explanation. Not surprisingly, rumors started to fly as students tried to make sense of the situation.
大荔枝點評：謠言就像武功，可以全憑想象力，比現實還真實。
B. 人們在感到焦慮時散布謠言
People Spread Rumors When They Feel Anxiety
通常，不確定性會滋生焦慮-我們希望對世界有清晰的認識，而當我們感到不確定時，我們會感到焦慮-焦慮本身與謠言傳播有關。一些研究表明，焦慮癥患者更容易散布謠言。
Oftentimes uncertainty breeds anxiety—we like to have a clear sense of the world, and we get anxious when we feel uncertainty—and anxiety.
另一個有趣的實驗使一些學生對即將到來的面試感到特別焦慮。與對照組中較不焦慮的學生相比，那些感到更焦慮的學生更容易散布謠言。
Another fascinating experiment made some students feel especially anxious about an upcoming interview. The students who were made to feel more anxious spread rumors more quickly than the less anxious students in the control group.
研究還表明，“可怕的”謠言（即，將要發(fā)生壞事的傳言）比“希望”的謠言（即，將要發(fā)生好事的傳聞）傳播得更多。無論是在網上散布謠言還是親自散布謠言，都是如此。
Research has also shown that “dread” rumors (i.e., rumors that something bad is going to happen) spread more than “wish” rumors (i.e., rumors that something good is going to happen). This is the case both for rumors spread.
大荔枝點評：華人的焦慮是彌漫的，不論身處何方，都可以參與到謠言的發(fā)布與傳播之中。作為發(fā)起者或傳播者，要了解自己的情緒---你焦慮了嗎？你恐懼了嗎？這是考驗EQ的時候來了---體察自己的情緒并控制自己的情緒及其對他人的影響。
C. 當信息很重要時，人們會散布謠言
People Spread Rumors When the Information is Important
盡管您可能不愿談論有關您所工作的公司的傳聞，但我可能不在乎。原因是它與我無關。另一方面，我很想談論其他對我來說更重要的傳聞。實際上，Allport和Postman于1947年制定的“謠言基本法則”是，散布謠言既取決于局勢的模糊性，也取決于謠言的重要性。
As much as you might be dying to talk about the rumor you heard about the company you work for, I probably don’t care a ton. The reason is that it’s just not that relevant to me. I,>basic law of rumor” that they developed in 1947 was that spreading rumors depends>ambiguity of the situation and the importance of the rumor.
在整個研究中，當信息對他們更重要時，人們更有可能散布謠言。
Across a whole bunch of studies, people are more likely to spread rumors when the information is more important to them.
大荔枝點評：要提防那些渾水摸魚、混淆視聽的商業(yè)行為，他們很可能在浪費你的時間，也在制造焦慮與恐慌。
D. 人們在相信信息時散布謠言
People Spread Rumors When They Believe the Information
面對現實吧-如果您聽到一個您覺得是完全荒謬的謠言，那么您就根本不會有動力去廣泛傳播。例如，一項研究調查了大學罷工期間謠言的傳播情況。最終，被廣泛傳播的是人們覺得更為可信的謠言。
Let’s face it—if you hear a rumor that you think is completely ridiculous, you probably won’t find yourself>It was the rumors that were more believable that ended up spreading the most.
大荔枝點評：“好事不出門，丑聞傳千里”。這些謠言將成為一些人永久的、信以為真的記憶---信息垃圾。
E. 人們傳播謠言有助于他們的自我形象
People Spread Rumors When it Helps Their Self-Image
大量研究表明，人們常常想對自己感覺良好，但是人們做到這一點的一種方法是通過謠言傳播。發(fā)生這種情況有兩個原因。一種是散布謠言，將您定位為掌握世界動態(tài)的人。然后，人們可能會成為最了解情況的人。謠言傳播可以提高自尊心的另一種方式是，當謠言是關于另一個群體的時候。其他研究表明，放下其他群體可以提高人們的自尊心。事實證明，很多謠言都是關于一個小組的“反對”小組。這些被稱為“楔形謠言”，有助于加強群體間的差異。顯然，通過提升自己的團隊與其他競爭對手的競爭關系，這些可以增強自尊心。
Plenty of research has shown that people often want to feel good about themselves, but. Another way rumor spreading can boost self-esteem is when the rumor is about another group. Other research has shown that putting down other groups can boost people’s self-esteem. Lots of rumors, it turns out, are about a group’s “opposing” group. These have been called “wedge rumors” and serve to reinforce intergroup differences. Clearly, these can boost self-regard by elevating.
大荔枝點評：謠言是一種無形的動力，像抽大麻一樣。對于有一些“信息靈通”人士，他們更傾向于捕風捉影，而且自我感覺良好。
F. 人們在傳播謠言幫助他們提高社會地位時
People Spread Rumors When it Helps Their Social Status
這聽起來可能是原因5，但有細微的差別。原因5是，當人們幫助傳播謠言時，他們對自己的感覺會更好。不過，更重要的方面是，人們可以利用謠言來加強他們的社交聯系。想要被一群人接受嗎？傳遞一些有關其競爭對手的謠言。
This might sound like reason #5, but there’s a subtle difference. Reason #5 was that people feel better about themselves when they help spread rumors. There’s a little more to it, though, which is that people can use rumors to strengthen their social ties. Want to be accepted by a group? Pass along some rumors about their rival group.
這項研究的證據可以在研究中看到，根據人們告訴他們的對象，人們會說不同的謠言。具體來說，問題是人們是否會傳聞某個學校團體排名下降的謠言，或者是否會傳出該團體排名上升的謠言。
The evidence for this can be seen in studies where people tell different rumors depending>decreased or whether they’d pass along a rumor that the group’s ranking increased.
結果表明，這取決于誰會收到謠言。如果是這個小組的成員，人們更有可能散布關于他們的正面謠言。如果是某個競爭對手的成員，那么人們更有可能散布負面謠言。關鍵是人們會策略性地散布謠言，以贏得他人的尊重。
The results showed that it depended>part of that group, people were more likely to spread a positive rumor about them. If it was someone who was part of a rival group, then people were more likely to spread the negative rumor. The point is that people spread rumors strategically, to gain the respect of others.
大荔枝點評：信息是拿來溝通交流與分享的，謠言卻還有更重要的功能，在大家還在困惑、焦慮與恐懼之中，來了一點解藥---毒雞湯，喝了還不死人。
Footnotes
[1] ↑Of course they did
[2]↑ Oh, hi. You’re interested enough to check out this particular footnote. Okay, when it comes to gossip, psychologists have noted that gossip is more like casual conversation about individual people. It’s mostly for amusement, reinforcing standards for “appropriate” behavior, or to exclude certain people from a group. Again, rumors by definition are unverified. Gossip could be totally verified, but it’s being spread for more social reasons—not in order to understand an important and confusing situation.
[3]↑ Whereas rumors are little isolated information statements, urban legends are more specifically stories, complete with settings and characters and plots. The end goal of an urban legend is to be a good story. A rumor is meant to lend understanding to an ambiguous situation.
http://socialpsychonline.com/2015/09/psychology-why-rumors-spread/
本文作者Andy Luttrell, 社會心理學博士
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