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When John was growing up,other kids felt sorry for him.His parents always had him weeding the garden,carrying out the garbage and delivering newspapers.But when John reached adulthood,he was better off than his childhood playmates.He had more job satisfaction,a better marriage and was healthier.Most of all,he was happier.Far happier.
These are the findings of a 40-year study that followed the lives of 456 teenage boys from Boston.The study showed that those who had worked as boys enjoyed happier and more productive lives than those who had not.“Boys who worked at home or the community gained competence ( 能 力 ) and came to feel they were worthwhile members of socicty,”said George Vaillant,the psychologist( 心 理 学 家 ) who made the discovery.“And because they felt good about themselves,others felt good about them.”
Vaillant's study followed these males in great detail.Interviews were repeated at ages 25, 31 and 47.Under Vaillant,the researchers compared the men's mental-health scores with their boyhood-activity scores.Points were awarded for part-time jobs,housework,effort in school,and ability to deal with problems.
The link between what the men had done as boys and how they turned out as adults was surprisingly sharp.Those who had done the most boyhood activities were twice as likely to have warm relations with a wide variety of people,five times as likely to be well paid and 16 times less likely to have been unemployed.The researchers also found that IQ and family and economic background made no real difference in how the boys turned out.
Working—at any age—is important.childhood activities help a child develop responsibility, independence,confidence and competence—the underpinnings( 基 础 ) of emotional health.They also help him understand that people must cooperate and work toward common goals.The most competent adults are those who know how to do this.Yet work isn't everything.As Tolstoy once said,“One can live magnificently in this world if one knows how to work and how to love,to work for the person one loves and to love one's work."
约翰成长的时候，其他孩子都为他感到难过。他的父母总是让他去除杂草、倒垃圾和送报纸。但当约翰成年时，他比童年时的玩伴们过得更好。他有更多的工作满足感，婚姻更美满，身体也更健康。最重要的是，他更快乐。远比童年时更快乐。
这是一项为期40年的研究的发现，该研究跟踪了456名来自波士顿的青少年的生活。这项研究表明，那些在童年时工作过的人比那些没有工作过的人享有更快乐和更有成效的生活。“在家工作或社区工作的男孩获得了能力，并开始觉得自己是社会中有价值的成员。”发现这一点的心理学家乔治·瓦兰特说道。“因为他们对自己感到良好，其他人也对他们感到良好。”
瓦兰特的研究非常详细地跟踪了这些男性。访谈在他们25岁、31岁和47岁时重复进行。在瓦兰特的领导下，研究人员将男性的心理健康评分与他们童年时的活动评分进行了比较。部分工作、家务、学校努力和处理问题的能力都会得到评分。
男性在童年时所做的事情与他们成年后的表现之间的联系非常明显。那些在童年时做得最多的活动的人更有可能与各种各样的人建立亲密关系，获得更高的薪酬，并且失业的可能性要少16倍。研究人员还发现，智商、家庭和经济背景在男孩长大后的表现上并没有真正的影响。
工作——无论在什么年龄段——都是重要的。童年时的活动有助于孩子培养责任感、独立性、自信心和能力——这是情感健康的基石。它们也帮助孩子理解人们必须合作并朝着共同目标努力。最有能力的成年人是那些知道如何做到这一点的人。然而，工作并非一切。正如托尔斯泰曾经说过的：“如果一个人知道如何工作和如何爱，为他爱的人工作并热爱自己的工作，他就能在这个世界上过得很美好。”
