Being able to hold a video call from the confines of your home seems to be a relaxing affair, but it takes its own toll. While the practice has become more popular in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, encouraging everyone to do more of their work online, studies show that “video conferencing fatigue”, or VCF, is a real phenomenon.
能夠在家中進行視訊通話似乎是一件輕鬆的事情，但這也會帶來損失。儘管這種做法在 Covid-19 大流行之後變得更加流行，鼓勵每個人在網路上完成更多工作，但研究表明，「視訊會議疲勞」（VCF）是一種真實的現象。
A study published in the Scientific Reports journal detailed how researchers performed an experiment that tracked the brain and heart activity of two groups of people, who watched a lecture online and in person, respectively. The results showed that people who watched the online stream were engaged in more intense body activity, which could result in feelings of exhaustion and fatigue despite just sitting in front of a screen and talking.
《科學報告》雜誌上發表的一項研究詳細介紹了研究人員如何進行一項實驗，追蹤分別在線上和親自觀看講座的兩組人的大腦和心臟活動。結果顯示，觀看線上直播的人會進行更劇烈的身體活動，儘管只是坐在螢幕前聊天，但仍可能會感到疲憊和疲倦。
The researchers pointed out how video conferencing removes body cues that aid in communication and the constant eye contact created by video calls, which could build up stress. The resulting fatigue and irritability could also lead to further breakdowns in communication.
研究人員指出，視訊會議消除了有助於溝通的身體暗示以及視訊通話產生的持續眼神接觸，而這可能會增加壓力。由此產生的疲勞和煩躁也可能導致溝通進一步中斷。
While more information and research is required, the team suggested alterations to video conferencing, such as enabling “speaker view” to limit eye contact intensity and taking breaks every 30 minutes, since the experiment showed fatigue set in within just 50 minutes. At any rate, the team reminded readers that video conferencing is not a substitute or a replacement for face-to-face communication, though it would function as a compliment since its advantages are still too numerous to give up.
雖然需要更多資訊和研究，但團隊建議對視訊會議進行修改，例如啟用「演講者視圖」以限制目光接觸強度以及每 30 分鐘休息一次，因為實驗顯示短短 50 分鐘內就會出現疲勞。無論如何，團隊提醒讀者，視訊會議並不是面對面溝通的替代品或替代品，儘管它可以起到一種恭維的作用，因為它的優點仍然太多而無法放棄。
The rise in work-from-home practices makes the idea of a fully internet-connected office environment tempting, but as the studies show, for humans to be a “social creature”, it requires actual interaction – talking and looking at a screen simply is not the same.
在家工作實踐的興起使得完全聯網的辦公環境的想法很誘人，但正如研究表明，對於人類來說，要成為一種“社交生物”，它需要實際的互動——簡單地交談和看屏幕不一樣。
Vocabulary
confine (n) 範圍
fatigue (n) 疲倦
intense (adj) 激烈的
irritability (adj) 易怒的
alteration (n) 改造
numerous (adj) 很多的
源:https://student.thestandard.com.hk/text/juniorstandard/article/stories/857
中文翻譯: 晚晚有魚
