評論
打印
Food Is Tastier When Part of a Ritual
當食物是儀式的一部分時，嘗起來更好吃
Food can taste better when you’re really hungry. Now a study reveals another condition that can enhance the flavor of a meal: when it’s part of a ritual.
很餓的時候食物更好吃。現在一項新的研究顯示在另一種情況下食物也能嘗起來更好吃，那就是當食物是儀式的一部分時。
Scientists asked volunteers to eat some chocolate. They told one group to relax for a few minutes, then eat the chocolate in any way they wanted. But another group was given these instructions: “Without unwrapping the chocolate bar, break it in half. Unwrap half of the bar and eat it. Then, unwrap the other half and eat it.”
科學家讓實驗者吃巧克力。他們告訴一組實驗者先放松一會兒，然后隨意吃巧克力。但是另一組則有如下要求：不要剝開巧克力包裝，先把巧克力掰成兩段。剝開一段的包裝，吃掉，然后，剝開另一段的包裝，吃掉。
And those who went through the more elaborate process rated the chocolate more highly, enjoyed it more, and were willing to pay more for it than the group who just ate it. Another experiment included a delay between the ritual and actually eating the food, and this further increased participants’ enjoyment of the food. [The study is in the journal Psychological Science.]
經過更復雜過程吃掉巧克力的實驗者對巧克力評價更高，更享受巧克力，并且比起隨意吃掉巧克力的那組更愿意花錢買巧克力。另一個實驗在真正吃食物與儀式之間間隔一段時間，這讓參與者更享受食物。
The scientists found that personal involvement in a ritual is necessary. When subjects watched someone else prepare lemonade in an elaborate way, they did not experience an increase in their enjoyment of the drink.
科學家發現個人參與到儀式中是很重要的。當實驗者觀看其他人用復雜的方式準備檸檬水的時候，他們并沒有覺得飲料更好喝了。
So, cut your own birthday cake, then hand out slices to everyone else, then taste your piece. It might seem like best thing you ever ate.
所以，自己親自切自己的蛋糕，然后把刀子交給別人，品嘗你自己的那一份。這會讓你覺得蛋糕美味無比。
—Christie Nicholson
