When you're fed up with self-obsessed twenty-somethings, try to remember that they'll be 33 one day. For that's the age when they lose the 'all about me' attitude, research suggests. By then, youthful selfishness subsides and people begin to consider others' feelings more often, researchers say. When we reach 33, we are also more likely to make an effort with parents and grandparents and take a positive attitude towards ending feuds with family or friends. The older we get, the more selfless we are in almost all areas of life – with the exception of volunteering in the community, the report suggests. Most people agree that having children is the turning point in changing our attitudes towards other people. This is when we apparently find ourselves worrying more about others and doing things for them, such as checking how they are getting home, offering to help with childcare and doing airport runs. And we are more likely to keep an eye out for neighbours, as well as give up seats to elderly people on public transport. We will probably also be more involved in the community and willing to donate money to good causes. Those under 33 are most likely to admit to being very selfish – with 40 percent saying that they put themselves first in all circumstances. However, 40 percent of this age group regularly volunteer for charity or their community – higher than any other age group. The age at which we are most selfish is our teenage years, researchers found – with people saying that just growing up made them more likely to consider others. Others cite meeting their partner or buying a house as the point at which they started being more compassionate and putting others first. Researchers at Make-A-Wish Foundation UK came to their conclusion after studying the attitudes of 2,000 adults aged from 20 to 60. (Read by Nelly Min. Nelly Min is a journalist at the China Daily Website.) (Agencies) 转载页面：http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/language_tips/news/2011-12/23/content_14314189.htm | 当你对那些以自我为中心的二十多岁的人忍无可忍时，你可以想想有一天他们也会到33岁的。 因为有研究显示，33岁是人们抛弃那种一切围着自己转的心态的年龄。 研究人员称，到了33岁，年轻时的自私心将消退，人们会开始更多地考虑他人的感受。 当我们到了33岁，我们也会更努力地和父母、祖父母相处，会更愿意积极化解和家人或朋友间的积怨。 研究报告显示，我们年龄越大，在生活的各个方面也会变得更无私——除了社区志愿服务外。 许多人都认为生育小孩是我们改变对他人态度的转折点。 这个时候，我们会明显发现自己更多地为他人操心、为他人做事，如确认他人如何回家，主动提出帮忙照顾小孩，或去接机送机。 而且我们会更愿意帮邻居留心，在公交车、地铁上给老人让座。 我们还可能会更多地参与社区的活动，更愿意给公益事业捐钱。 33岁以下的人最可能承认自己十分自私——40%的人说他们在所有情况下都把自己放在第一位。 然而，这个年龄段的人有40%经常为慈善组织或自己的社区做志愿服务，比例高于任何其他年龄段。 研究人员发现，我们在青少年时期最自私。有人说长大后自然就会更多地为他人考虑。 其他人称遇见伴侣或买房是转折点，自那以后他们开始变得更有同情心，会先为别人考虑。 这些结论是英国许愿基金会的研究人员在调查了20岁到60岁的2000名成人的态度后得出的。 （中国日报网英语点津 陈丹妮 编辑：Julie） |
Vocabulary: self-obsessed: 以自我为中心的，自恋的 feud: 仇恨；长期不和；争吵 good causes: 公益事业 |