Lessons in How to Age With Wisdom
善用智慧面對老年生活
By Phyllis Korkki

Since ancient times, the elusive concept of wisdom has figured prominently in philosophical and religious texts. The question remains compelling: What is wisdom, and how does it play out in individual lives?
智慧這難以捉摸的概念自古即在哲學與宗教文獻中占有顯著地位。這個問題至今仍然令人矚目：智慧究竟是什麼？它在個人的生命中如何展現？

Vivian Clayton, a geriatric neuropsychologist in Orinda, California, developed a definition of wisdom in the 1970s that has served as a foundation for research on the subject ever since. After scouring ancient texts, she found that most people described as wise were decision makers. So she asked a group of law students, law professors and retired judges to name the characteristics of a wise person. She determined that wisdom consists of three key components: cognition, reflection and compassion.
加州奧林達老年神經心理學家薇薇安‧柯雷頓1970年代提出一套智慧的定義，此後成為該命題的一大研究基礎。她瀏覽古籍後發現，被稱為智者的人多為決策者。她要求一群法科學生、法學教授及退休法官說出智者的特性，最後她歸結出智慧的三大關鍵成分：認知、反思與同情心。

Research shows that cognitive functioning slows as people age. But a recent study in Topics in Cognitive Science pointed out that older people have much more information in their brains than younger ones, and the quality of the information in the older brain is more nuanced.
研究顯示，認知功能會隨著老化而衰退。然而最近透過「認知科學論題期刊」發表的一項研究報告指出，年紀較大者大腦貯存的訊息多於較年輕者，訊息的品質也更精妙。

According to Dr. Clayton, one must take time to gain insights and perspectives from one’s cognitive knowledge to be wise. Then one can use those insights to understand and help others.
柯雷頓博士指出，一個人必須經年累月才能自認知的知識中獲得洞察力，進而煥發智慧的光采，再以這些洞察力瞭解並幫助別人。

Monika Ardelt, an associate sociology professor at the University of Florida, felt a need to expand on studies of old age because of research showing that satisfaction late in life consists of things like maintaining physical and mental health, volunteering and having positive relationships with others. But this isn’t always possible. Wisdom, she has found, is what can help even severely impaired people find meaning, contentment and acceptance in life.
佛羅里達大學副教授莫妮卡‧阿德爾特認為有必要擴大老年研究的範圍，因為研究顯示，老年滿足感來自維持身心健康、擔任志工及與他人保有正面關係等因素。然而這些有時做不到。她發現有了智慧，就連身心功能嚴重受損的人也能找到生命中的意義、滿足與包容。

She developed a scale consisting of 39 questions aimed at measuring three dimensions of wisdom. People responding to statements on Professor Ardelt’s wisdom scale were not told they were being measured for wisdom. Respondents later answered questions about hypothetical challenges, and those who showed evidence of high wisdom were also more likely to have better coping skills.
她設計了一個量表，以39個問題評估智慧的三個面向。回答問題的人並不知道他們正在接受有關智慧的評估。他們稍後回答有關假設性挑戰的問題，流露高度智慧的人同時也比較可能具備處理各種問題的技巧。

An impediment to wisdom is thinking, “I can’t stand who I am now because I’m not who I used to be,” said Isabella S. Bick, a psychotherapist who, at 81, still practices part time in Sharon, Connecticut. She has aging clients who are upset by a perceived worsening of their looks, sexual performance and abilities. For them, an acceptance of aging is necessary for growth, but “it’s not a resigned acceptance; it’s an embracing acceptance,” she said.
81歲的心理治療師伊莎貝拉‧畢克目前還在康乃狄克州夏倫市以部分時間看診。她說，智慧的障礙之一是，心想「我無法忍受現在的自己，因為我已經不是以前的我」。她的一些病人已經進入老年，因為自認容貌、性功能與各種能力不如以往而深感困擾。她說，對他們而言，接受老化的事實是成長的必要條件，然而「這不是認命式的接受，而是擁抱式的接受」。

Professor Ardelt’s research shows that when people in nursing homes score high on her wisdom scale, they also report a greater sense of well-being. “If things are really bad, it’s good to be wise,” she said.
阿德爾特教授的研究顯示，住在安養機構的老人家如果在她設計的智慧量表中得到高分，通常也會有比較濃厚的幸福感。她說：「如果處境真的很糟，有智慧是件好事。」

Wisdom is characterized by a “reduction in self-centeredness,” Professor Ardelt said. Wise people try to understand situations from multiple perspectives, and they show tolerance as a result.
她說，智慧的特色是「自我中心色彩降低」。有智慧的人往往會試著從多種角度瞭解各種狀況，並因此能夠容忍。

Daniel Goleman, author of “Emotional Intelligence,” said, an important sign of wisdom was “generativity,” a term used by the psychologist Erik Erikson, who developed an influential theory on stages of the human life span. Generativity means giving back without needing anything in return, Dr. Goleman said.
「情緒智慧」一書作者高曼表示，「育成能力」是智慧的重要徵兆之一。心理學家艾利克森採用這個名詞，同時提出有關生命不同階段的重要理論。他說，育成能力意指反饋且不求任何回報。

He interviewed Erikson, along with his wife, Joan, in the late 1980s, when both were in their 80s. Erikson’s theory of human development had initially included eight stages, from infancy to old age. When the Eriksons themselves reached old age, though, they found a need to add a ninth stage of development, one in which wisdom plays a crucial role. “They depict an old age in which one has enough conviction in one’s own completeness to ward off the despair that gradual physical disintegration can too easily bring,” Dr. Goleman said
1980年代末，他訪問艾利克森及其妻子瓊安。二人當時均已年逾八旬。艾利克森最初提出的人類發展說分八個階段，從嬰兒期直到老年。然而艾利克森夫婦邁入老年時，發現有必要增加第九個發展階段。在這個階段中，智慧扮演關鍵角色。高曼說：「他們認為，一個人邁入老年之後，必須對自己的完足具備充分的信心，以抵擋因為身體漸衰而極易陷入的絕望。」

“Even the simple activities of daily living may present difficulty and conflict,” Joan Erikson wrote in an expanded version of her husband’s book, “The Life Cycle Completed.”
瓊安在艾利克森所著「完成生命循環」一書增修版中寫道：「即使日常生活中的簡單活動也會帶來困難與衝突。」

The book adds: “One must join in the process of adaptation. With whatever tact and wisdom we can muster, disabilities must be accepted with lightness and humor.”
該書又說：「一個人必須學會如何調適。善用我們擁有的一切機巧與智慧，必須以輕鬆幽默的心境坦然接受失能的事實。」

原文參照：
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/13/business/retirementspecial/the-science-of-older-and-wiser.html

紐約時報中文版翻譯：
http://cn.tmagazine.com/health/20140323/t10wisdom/zh-hant/  

2014-04-01聯合報/G5版/UNITEDDAILYNEWS 陳世欽譯 原文參見紐時週報十版下