居家办公不利于工作效率(下)

随着人们习惯远程工作，有理由认为远程工作的一些协调成本可能会下降。自2020年以来，许多人都能熟练使用Zoom、Webex、Teams或Slack。但随着时间的推移，另一个成本可能会上升：人力资本的发展不足。

双语精读

Some of the co-ordination costs of remote work might reasonably be expected to fall as people get used to it. Since 2020, many will have become adept at using Zoom, Webex, Teams or Slack. But another cost may rise over time: the underdevelopment of human capital.

随着人们习惯远程工作，有理由认为远程工作的一些协调成本可能会下降。自2020年以来，许多人都能熟练使用Zoom、Webex、Teams或Slack。但随着时间的推移，另一个成本可能会上升：人力资本的发展不足。

In a study of software engineers published in April, Drs Emanuel and Harrington, along with Amanda Pallais, also of Harvard, found that feedback exchanged between colleagues dropped sharply after the move to remote work.

在4月份发表的一项针对软件工程师的研究中，伊曼纽尔和哈林顿博士以及同样来自哈佛大学的阿曼达·帕莱斯发现，在转向远程工作后，同事之间的反馈交流大幅下降。

Drs Atkin, Schoar and Shinde documented a relative decline in learning for workers at home. Those in offices picked up skills more quickly.

阿特金、斯科尔和辛德博士也用文献证明了在家工作的人的学习能力会相对下降。那些在办公室工作的人掌握技能的速度更快。

The origins of the view that, contrary to the above, remote working boosts productivity can be traced to an experiment nearly a decade before the pandemic, which was reported by Nicholas Bloom of Stanford and others in 2013.

与上述观点相反，认为远程工作能提高效率的观点可以追溯到疫情暴发前近10年的一项实验，斯坦福大学的尼古拉斯·布鲁姆和其他人在2013年发表了这一实验结果。

Call-centre workers for a Chinese online travel agency now known as Trip.com increased their performance by 13% when remote-a figure that continues to appear in media coverage today.

现在名为携程的一家中国在线旅行社的电话服务中心的工作人员在远程办公时，他们的工作表现提高了13%。这一数字如今依然出现在媒体报道中。

But two big wrinkles are often neglected: first, more than two-thirds of the improved performance came from employees working longer hours, not more efficiently; second, the Chinese firm eventually halted remote work because off-site employees struggled to get promoted.

但有两大问题经常被忽视：首先，超过三分之二的表现提高是因为工作时间更长，而非效率更高；其次，这家中国企业最终停止了远程办公，因为远程员工很难获得晋升。

In 2022 Dr Bloom visited Trip.com again, this time to investigate the effects of a hybrid-working trial. The outcomes of this experiment were less striking: it had a negligible impact on productivity, though workers put in longer days and wrote more code when in the office.

2022年，布鲁姆博士再次访问了携程，这一次是为了调查尝试混合办公的效果。这次实验的结果不那么引人注目：混合办公对工作效率的影响微乎其微，尽管员工在办公室工作的时间更长，编写的代码也更多。

There is more to work (and life) than productivity. Perhaps the greatest virtue of remote work is that it leads to happier employees. People spend less time commuting, which from their vantage-point might feel like an increase in productivity, even if conventional measures fail to detect it.

但效率不是工作(和生活)的全部。远程办公的最大优点或许是能让员工更快乐。人们花在通勤上的时间减少了，从他们的角度来看，这可能会让他们感觉到效率提高，虽然传统的衡量标准无法检测到这一点。

They can more easily fit in school pickups and doctor appointments, not to mention the occasional lie-in or midmorning jog.

他们可以更方便地接送孩子上学和看医生，更不用说偶尔睡个懒觉或早上10点左右去慢跑。

And some tasks-notably, those requiring unbroken concentration for long periods-can often be done more smoothly from home than in open-plan offices. All this explains why so many workers have become so office-shy.

一些任务--尤其是那些需要长时间不间断地集中注意力的任务--往往在家比在敞开式办公室里更容易完成。所有这些都解释了为什么如此多的员工变得如此不愿意在办公室上班。

Indeed, several surveys have found employees are willing to accept pay cuts for the option of working from home. Having satisfied employees on slightly lower pay, in turn, might be a good deal for corporate managers.

事实上，几项调查发现，如果可以选择居家办公，员工愿意接受降薪。以略低的薪酬招到对工作满意的员工，这对公司经理来说可能是一笔不错的买卖。

For many people, then, the future of work will remain hybrid. Nevertheless, the balance of the work week is likely to tilt back to the office and away from home-not because bosses are sadomasochists with a kink for rush-hour traffic, but because better productivity lies in that direction.

因此，对许多人来说，未来的工作仍将是混合型的。然而，每周的工作可能会向办公室而非居家倾斜--这不是因为老板们是施虐受虐狂，对早晚高峰的交通有变态的癖好，而是因为在办公室里会有更高的工作效率。

词汇预习

site [高考]
美[saɪt] | 英[saɪt]
n. 地点；位置；现场 vt. 使 ... 位于
impact [高考]
美[ˈɪmpækt , ɪmˈpækt] | 英[ˈɪmpækt , ɪmˈpækt]
n. 影响；冲击力；撞击 vt. 挤入；压紧；撞击；对 ... 发生影响 vi. 冲击；撞击；产生影响
code [高考]
美[koʊd] | 英[kəʊd]
n. 密码；法规；准则 v. 制成法典；把 ... 编码
option [高考]
美[ˈɑːpʃn] | 英[ˈɒpʃn]
n. 选项；选择；选择权；可选择的事物 v. 购买（或出售）…的选择权
sharply [高考]
美[ˈʃɑrpli] | 英[ˈʃɑ:pli]
adv. 锐利地；严厉地；厉害地；轮廓清晰、线条分明地
concentration [高考]
美[ˌkɑːnsnˈtreɪʃn] | 英[ˌkɒnsnˈtreɪʃn]
n. 集中；专心；浓度
corporate [高考]
美[ˈkɔːrpərət] | 英[ˈkɔːpərət]
adj. 法人的；公司的；社团的；共同的；全体的
productivity [高考]
美[ˌprɑːdʌkˈtɪvəti] | 英[ˌprɒdʌkˈtɪvəti]
n. 生产率；生产力
detect [高考]
美[dɪˈtekt] | 英[dɪˈtekt]
v. 发觉；察觉；探测
reasonably [高考]
美[ˈriznəblɪ] | 英[ˈri:znəbli]
adv. 适度地；相当地；合理地；有理性地
feedback [高考]
美[ˈfiːdbæk] | 英[ˈfiːdbæk]
n. 反馈；反馈意见
investigate [高考]
美[ɪnˈvestɪɡeɪt] | 英[ɪnˈvestɪɡeɪt]
v. 调查；研究
efficiently [高考]
美[ɪˈfɪʃəntlɪ] | 英[ɪ'fɪʃntlɪ]
adv. 高效率地；有效地
occasional [高考]
美[əˈkeɪʒənl] | 英[əˈkeɪʒənl]
adj. 偶然的；临时的；不时的
centre [高考]
美[ˈsentər] | 英[ˈsentə(r)]
n. 中心；集中点 v. 居中；使集中 adj. 中心的；中央的
media [高考]
美[ˈmiːdiə] | 英[ˈmiːdiə]
n. 传播媒介；(medium的复数)媒体；新闻媒介
figure [高考]
美[ˈfɪɡjər] | 英[ˈfɪɡə(r)]
n. 图形；人物；身材；体形 v. 认为；是重要部分；是…的部分；计算（数量或成本）
eventually [高考]
美[ɪˈventʃuəli] | 英[ɪˈventʃuəli]
adv. 最后；终于
decade [高考]
美[ˈdekeɪd] | 英[ˈdekeɪd]
n. 十年，十年间，十年期（尤指一个年代)
decline [高考]
美[dɪˈklaɪn] | 英[dɪˈklaɪn]
v. 下降；减少；变弱；拒绝；倾斜 n. 减少，衰退
agency [高考]
美[ˈeɪdʒənsi] | 英[ˈeɪdʒənsi]
n. 代理；代理处；政府机构
remote [高考]
美[rɪˈmoʊt] | 英[rɪˈməʊt]
adj. 遥远的；偏僻的；远程的；(感情等)距离很大 n. 远程操作
trial [高考]
美[ˈtraɪəl] | 英[ˈtraɪəl]
n. 审讯；试验；试用；尝试；预赛或选拔赛；讨厌的事；惹麻烦的人 v. 测试
software [高考]
美[ˈsɔːftwer] | 英[ˈsɒftweə(r)]
n. 软件
contrary [高考]
美[ˈkɑːntreri , kənˈtreri] | 英[ˈkɒntrəri , kənˈtreəri]
adj. 相反的；截然不同的；执拗的 n. 反面；相反
com [高考]
美[kɑm] | 英[kɑm]
abbr. 计算机输出缩微胶片(=computer-output microfilm) abbr. 组件对象模型(=Component Object Model)
virtue [高考]
美[ˈvɜːrtʃuː] | 英[ˈvɜːtʃuː]
n. 美德；德行；优点；贞操
conventional [高考]
美[kənˈvenʃənl] | 英[kənˈvenʃənl]
adj. 传统的；惯例的；常规的
increase in [高考]
美[ɪnˈkris ɪn] | 英[inˈkri:s in]
增加；增大
in turn [高考]
美[ɪn tɜːrn] | 英[ɪn tɜːn]
依次；轮流；反之；反过来
get used to [高考]
美[ɡet juːzd tu] | 英[ɡet juːzd tu]
习惯于
impact on [高考]
美[ˈɪmˌpækt ɑn] | 英[ˈimpækt ɔn]
对 ... 产生影响
lower [高考]
美[ˈloʊər] | 英[ˈləʊə(r)]
adj. 低的；下级的；下层的 v. 降低；减弱；跌落
coverage [高考]
美[ˈkʌvərɪdʒ] | 英[ˈkʌvərɪdʒ]
n. 新闻报道；覆盖范围；承保范围
hybrid [高考]
美[ˈhaɪbrɪd] | 英[ˈhaɪbrɪd]
n. 混合物；杂种；混血儿 adj. 杂种的；混合的
smoothly [四级]
美[smuðlɪ] | 英[ˈsmu:ðli]
adv. 平滑地；流畅地
in that [四级]
美[ɪn ðæt] | 英[in ðæt]
因为，由于，既然
along with [四级]
美[əˈlɔːŋ wɪð] | 英[əˈlɒŋ wɪð]
与...在一起；在...以外；沿着；随着；（除…之外）又…，加之
decline in [四级]
美 | 英
在……方面的减少；下降
contrary to [四级]
美['kɑːnˌtreriː tu] | 英['kɒntrərɪ tu]
与 ... 相反
not to mention [四级]
美[nɑt tu ˈmɛnʃən] | 英[nɔt tu: ˈmenʃən]
更不用说
striking [四级]
美[ˈstraɪkɪŋ] | 英[ˈstraɪkɪŋ]
adj. 显著的; 引人注目的; 容貌出众的; 妩媚动人的 v. 打( strike的现在分词); 击; 敲响; 报时
notably [六级]
美[ˈnoʊtəbli] | 英[ˈnəʊtəbli]
adv. 显著地；值得注意地；特别地
tilt [六级]
美[tɪlt] | 英[tɪlt]
vt. (使)倾斜，(略微)倾侧(身体部位)；(使)倾向于 vi. 抨击；争论 n. 倾斜，倾侧，倾斜度；尝试，努力
negligible [六级]
美[ˈneɡlɪdʒəbl] | 英[ˈneɡlɪdʒəbl]
adj. 可以忽略的；微不足道的
a good deal [六级]
美[e ɡʊd dil] | 英[ə ɡud di:l]
许多；大量
learning [专八]
美[ˈlɜːrnɪŋ] | 英[ˈlɜːnɪŋ]
n. 学问；学识；学习
adept [专八]
美[əˈdept , ˈædept ] | 英[əˈdept , ˈædept]
adj. 熟练的；老练的 n. 名手；专家

重点讲解

Some of the co-ordination costs of remote work might reasonably be expected to fall as people get used to it. Since 2020, many will have become adept at using Zoom, Webex, Teams or Slack. But another cost may rise over time: the underdevelopment of human capital.

adept a. & n.

1. 作形容词：内行的，熟练的

【例】I’m afraid she’s also an adept liar.

恐怕她还是一个撒谎专家。

2. 作名词：行家，熟练做某事的人

【例】a form of kung fu practiced by only a handful of adepts

只有少数几个行家才会的一种武功

capital n. & a.

1. 作名词

（1）首都；国都

【例】Paris, the fashion capital of the world 巴黎，世界时装之都

（2）资本；资金

【例】to set up a business with a starting capital of £100 000

以 10 万英镑为启动资金创办一个企业

（3）大写字母

【例】Please write in capitals/in capital letters.

请用大写字母书写。

2. 作形容词

（1）大写的

【例】English is written with a capital “E”.

English 一词中字母 E 大写。

（2）死刑的

【例】a capital offence 死罪

在4月份发表的一项针对软件工程师的研究中，伊曼纽尔和哈林顿博士以及同样来自哈佛大学的阿曼达·帕莱斯发现，在转向远程工作后，同事之间的反馈交流大幅下降。

pick up

1. （偶然）得到，学会

【例】She picked up Spanish when she was living in Mexico.

她旅居墨西哥时顺便学会了西班牙语。

2. 辨认；识别出

【例】Scientists can now pick up early signs of the disease.

现在科学家能够辨认这种疾病的早期症状。

3. 取回；收集

【例】I picked up my coat from the cleaners.

我从干洗店取回了外衣。

4. 收拾；整理

【例】Will you pick up all your toys?

把你的玩具都收起来好不好？

Drs Atkin, Schoar and Shinde documented a relative decline in learning for workers at home. Those in offices picked up skills more quickly.

阿特金、斯科尔和辛德博士也用文献证明了在家工作的人的学习能力会相对下降。那些在办公室工作的人掌握技能的速度更快。

pick up

1. （偶然）得到，学会

【例】She picked up Spanish when she was living in Mexico.

她旅居墨西哥时顺便学会了西班牙语。

2. 辨认；识别出

【例】Scientists can now pick up early signs of the disease.

现在科学家能够辨认这种疾病的早期症状。

3. 取回；收集

【例】I picked up my coat from the cleaners.

我从干洗店取回了外衣。

4. 收拾；整理

【例】Will you pick up all your toys?

把你的玩具都收起来好不好？

The origins of**** the view**** that****,**** contrary**** to**** the above,**** remote**** working boosts**** productivity**** can be**** traced**** to**** an**** experiment**** nearly**** a decade**** before**** the pandemic****,**** which was reported**** by**** Nicholas**** Bloom of**** Stanford**** and others**** in**** 2013****.****

与上述观点相反，认为远程工作能提高效率的观点可以追溯到疫情暴发前近10年的一项实验，斯坦福大学的尼古拉斯·布鲁姆和其他人在2013年发表了这一实验结果。

Call-centre workers for a Chinese online travel agency now known as Trip.com increased their performance by 13% when remote—a figure that continues to appear in media coverage today.

现在名为携程的一家中国在线旅行社的电话服务中心的工作人员在远程办公时，他们的工作表现提高了13%。这一数字如今依然出现在媒体报道中。

figure n. & v.

1. 作名词

（1）（尤指官方资料中的）数据，数字

【例】By 2009, this figure had risen to 14 million.

到 2009 年为止，这个数字已经增长到 1 400 万。

（2）人物；人士

【例】a leading figure in the music industry 音乐界一位主要人物

（3）身材；体形

【例】She's always had a good figure.

她身材一向很好。

2. 作动词

（1）认为，认定

【例】We figured the sensible thing to do was to wait.

我们认为，明智的做法是等待。

（2）是重要部分

【例】Social issues figured prominently in the talks.

社会问题是会谈的重点。

coverage n.

1. 新闻报道

【例】media/newspaper coverage 媒体／报纸的报道

2. 信息范围，覆盖范围

【例】The volume offers an incomplete coverage of the history of philosophy.

这本书所涵盖的哲学史并不完整。

但有两大问题经常被忽视：首先，超过三分之二的表现提高是因为工作时间更长，而非效率更高；其次，这家中国企业最终停止了远程办公，因为远程员工很难获得晋升。

struggle v. & n.

1. 作动词

（1）奋斗；努力

【例】a country struggling for independence 为独立而奋斗的国家

（2）斗争；抗争

【例】He struggled against cancer for two years.

他同癌症抗争了两年。

2. 作名词

（1）奋斗，斗争

【例】a struggle for survival 为生存而奋斗

（2）搏斗；扭打

【例】There were no signs of a struggle at the murder scene.

凶杀现场没有搏斗痕迹。

hybrid n.

1. 杂种动物；杂交植物

【例】a hybrid of wheat and rye 小麦和黑麦的杂交体

2. （不同事物的）混合物，合成物

【例】hybrid architecture 具有混合风格的建筑

In 2022 Dr Bloom visited Trip.com again, this time to investigate the effects of a hybrid-working trial. The outcomes of this experiment were less striking: it had a negligible impact on productivity, though workers put in longer days and wrote more code when in the office.

2022年，布鲁姆博士再次访问了携程，这一次是为了调查尝试混合办公的效果。这次实验的结果不那么引人注目：混合办公对工作效率的影响微乎其微，尽管员工在办公室工作的时间更长，编写的代码也更多。

struggle v. & n.

1. 作动词

（1）奋斗；努力

【例】a country struggling for independence 为独立而奋斗的国家

（2）斗争；抗争

【例】He struggled against cancer for two years.

他同癌症抗争了两年。

2. 作名词

（1）奋斗，斗争

【例】a struggle for survival 为生存而奋斗

（2）搏斗；扭打

【例】There were no signs of a struggle at the murder scene.

凶杀现场没有搏斗痕迹。

hybrid n.

1. 杂种动物；杂交植物

【例】a hybrid of wheat and rye 小麦和黑麦的杂交体

2. （不同事物的）混合物，合成物

【例】hybrid architecture 具有混合风格的建筑

There is more to work (and life) than productivity. Perhaps the greatest virtue of remote work is that it leads to happier employees. People spend less time commuting, which from their vantage-point might feel like an increase in productivity, even if conventional measures fail to detect it.

但效率不是工作(和生活)的全部。远程办公的最大优点或许是能让员工更快乐。人们花在通勤上的时间减少了，从他们的角度来看，这可能会让他们感觉到效率提高，虽然传统的衡量标准无法检测到这一点。

vantage point

1. 见解，观点

（英文释义：a way of thinking about things that comes from your own particular situation or experiences）

【例】The whole dispute looked silly from my vantage point.

依我看来，整场争论显得很荒唐。

2. （观察事物的）有利位置

【例】From my vantage point on the hill, I could see the whole procession.

从山上的这个有利位置，我可以看到整个游行队伍。

lie-in n. 睡懒觉

【例】I always have a lie-in on Sunday.

星期天我总要睡个懒觉。

【拓展】lie in 睡懒觉；起得晚

【例】It's a holiday tomorrow, so you can lie in.

明天放假，你可以睡懒觉了。

They can more easily fit in school pickups and doctor appointments, not to mention the occasional lie-in or midmorning jog.

他们可以更方便地接送孩子上学和看医生，更不用说偶尔睡个懒觉或早上10点左右去慢跑。

vantage point

1. 见解，观点

（英文释义：a way of thinking about things that comes from your own particular situation or experiences）

【例】The whole dispute looked silly from my vantage point.

依我看来，整场争论显得很荒唐。

2. （观察事物的）有利位置

【例】From my vantage point on the hill, I could see the whole procession.

从山上的这个有利位置，我可以看到整个游行队伍。

lie-in n. 睡懒觉

【例】I always have a lie-in on Sunday.

星期天我总要睡个懒觉。

【拓展】lie in 睡懒觉；起得晚

【例】It's a holiday tomorrow, so you can lie in.

明天放假，你可以睡懒觉了。

And some tasks—notably, those requiring unbroken concentration for long periods—can often be done more smoothly from home than in open-plan offices. All this explains why so many workers have become so office-shy.

一些任务--尤其是那些需要长时间不间断地集中注意力的任务--往往在家比在敞开式办公室里更容易完成。所有这些都解释了为什么如此多的员工变得如此不愿意在办公室上班。

in turn

1. 相应地

（英文释义：as a result of sth.）

【例】Interest rates were cut and, in turn, share prices rose.

利率下调，股价就相应地上涨了。

2. 依次；轮流

【例】The children called out their names in turn.

孩子们逐一自报姓名。

Indeed, several surveys have found employees are willing to accept pay cuts for the option of working from home. Having satisfied employees on slightly lower pay, in turn, might be a good deal for corporate managers.

事实上，几项调查发现，如果可以选择居家办公，员工愿意接受降薪。以略低的薪酬招到对工作满意的员工，这对公司经理来说可能是一笔不错的买卖。

in turn

1. 相应地

（英文释义：as a result of sth.）

【例】Interest rates were cut and, in turn, share prices rose.

利率下调，股价就相应地上涨了。

2. 依次；轮流

【例】The children called out their names in turn.

孩子们逐一自报姓名。

For many people, then, the future of work will remain hybrid. Nevertheless, the balance of the work week is likely to tilt back to the office and away from home—not because bosses are sadomasochists with a kink for rush-hour traffic, but because better productivity lies in that direction.

因此，对许多人来说，未来的工作仍将是混合型的。然而，每周的工作可能会向办公室而非居家倾斜--这不是因为老板们是施虐受虐狂，对早晚高峰的交通有变态的癖好，而是因为在办公室里会有更高的工作效率。

kink n. & v.

1. 作名词

（1）弯，结

【例】a dog with a kink in its tail 尾巴上有个结的狗

（2）怪癖；怪念头

【例】He had a kink about it.

他对这件事有一种奇怪的想法。

（3）（计划、制度等中的）小问题，小瑕疵

【例】We need to iron out the kinks in the new system.

我们需要理顺新制度中的一些问题。

2. 作动词：使扭结，使绞缠

【例】Take care to avoid kinking the wire.

当心别让电线打结。

课后练习

One of the shortcomings of remote working is that ____.
A. companies spend more on IT equipment
B. it is harder to evaluate workers’ performance
C. there is a lack of trust among colleagues
D. workers cannot improve their skills quickly
The study of Trip.com showed that ____.
A. remote working could increase performance by 13%
B. remote working did little to boost efficiency
C. hybrid working was better than remote working
D. people were willing to work longer hours at home
The benefits of remote working include ____.
A. shorter working hours
B. varied leisure activities
C. higher salaries
D. greater job satisfaction
The author believes that the future trend may be ____.
A. more office work and less remote work
B. more remote work and less office work
C. a new mode that brings higher productivity
D. the cancellation of hybrid working