阿嬤妳今嘛在叨位? 研究證實阿嬤疼孫天經地義 Research shows grandmothers may be more connected to grandchildren

　
A new American study suggests that grandmothers may be more emotionally connected to their grandkids than to their own sons and daughters.

The research found that the activation in areas of the brain associated with emotional empathy is most obvious when they look at photos of their grandchildren, which suggests grandmothers are geared toward feeling what their grandchildren are feeling when they interact with them.

However, when the grandmothers look at images of their adult children, areas of the brain associated with cognitive empathy are activated, meaning they can cognitively understand their adult children, rather than experiencing emotional connection.

This could explain why grandparents often seem more excited to see their grandchildren than their grown-up children.

友善讓你懂 │ 解說：

　
美國的一項研究證實，祖母與孫子孫女的情感聯繫，可能比與自己的兒女更為緊密。

研究發現，當這些阿嬤看到孫輩的照片時，會明顯觸動大腦中掌管情感同理心的區域，也就是說祖母在與孫輩互動時，更能同理他們的感受。

不過，當祖母看到他們成年子女的照片時，大腦被觸動的區域則是與認知的情感有關，這意味著他們可以在認知上理解他們的成年子女，而不是情感的聯繫。

這也可以解釋，為什麼祖父母看到孫子孫女時，往往比看到他們成年的孩子更興奮。

輕鬆帶著走 │ 學習：

　
Be associated with 意思就是「與什麼有關」、「與什麼相連」
例句：There are many health problems that are often associated with smoking.
有許多健康問題都與吸煙有關

當作主動用法時，associate就是「聯想」、「連結」的意思
例句１：She always associates that place with her youth.
她總是把那個地方與她的青春聯想在一起。
例句２：People always associate this company with innovation.
人們總是將這家公司與創新聯想在一起。

本篇其他相關單字，介紹如下：

• activation　(n.) 觸發 啟動
• empathy　(n.) 同理心
• interact　(v.) 互動
• cognitive　(adj.) 認知的
• connection　(n.) 連結