为何排队是种折磨?

Everyone hates to wait in lines. We get that gnawing feeling that our precious life is slipping away while we’re doing something so meaningless. But it’s not always the length of the wait we find so unbearable. Some people camp outside Apple stores for an entire night just to get their hands on the latest product. But waiting 10 minutes in a grocery store just to buy a drink? Forget it.

人人都讨厌排队。我们为宝贵生命浪费在这些毫无意义的事情上而苦恼。但是漫长的等待并非总是那么让人无法忍受。一些人在苹果店外支起帐篷，用一整晚的时间换来最新的苹果产品。而在杂货店里等上十分钟，只为买瓶饮料？还是算了吧。

Our behavior when waiting is only partly defined by the length of the wait. “Often the psychology of queuing is more important than the statistics of the wait itself,” notes the MIT researcher Richard Larson. Larson, also known as Dr Queue, is an expert on waiting lines.

我们等待时的行为在一定程度上取决于等待时间的长短。“等待时的心理状态通常比等待时长本身更为重要，”麻省理工学院的研究员理查德•拉尔森说。拉森是知名的排队研究专家，被称为“排队博士”。

One apparent aspect of queuing psychology is that we get bored when we wait in line. This issue is tackled in many ways, from magazines in hospital waiting rooms to mirrors in elevators so that we can check our appearance.

排队心理学的一个显著方面是我们排队时会感到无聊。有很多方法可以解决这一问题，比如从医院候诊室里的杂志到电梯里供我们整理仪容的镜子。

We really hate it when we expect a short wait and then get a long one. But studies show that we are much more patient when we are given an idea of how long we’ll be waiting.

我们非常讨厌以为只等一会儿但却等了很长时间。但是研究表明，我们在知道明确的等待时间时会更加耐心。

Walt Disney Co knows this better than anyone else. It posts estimated waiting times for attractions in its theme parks. But according to Larson, these times are overestimated so that visitors get to the front of the queue more quickly than they expect. It keeps them happy.

迪士尼公司比任何人都深谙其中之道。它在主题公园的景点前公布预计的等待时间。但是按照拉尔森的说法，这些预计时间会比实际等待时间长一些，因此游客比预期排队要快，这让他们非常高兴。

But perhaps the biggest influence on our feelings about waiting in a line has to do with our perception of fairness. When it comes to queues, the universally acknowledged standard is first come, first served. Any deviation from this principle is regarded as unfair and can lead to violent queue rage. A simple search on Baidu news with the keywords “cutting in line” and “fight” throws up dozens of headlines in the past year.

但是影响我们排队情绪的最大因素可能与我们的公平感有关。排队公认的标准是先来先到。任何违背这条原则的行为都被视为不公平之举，从而引发排队骚乱。只需在百度资讯上输入关键字“插队”和“打架”，便能搜出许多去年的头条资讯。

Queue rage is not uncommon in Western countries either. The New York Times reported on an incident in which a man was stabbed last July in a Maryland post office by a fellow customer who mistakenly thought he had cut in line.

排队骚乱在西方国家也很常见。《纽约时报》曾报道过一起事件，去年七月某男子在马里兰的一家邮局被另一名顾客刺伤，因为该顾客误以为他插了队。

Sometimes, however, we are willing to make exceptions. For example, we are fine with the idea of an express lane at the supermarket - someone buying just a drink shouldn’t be forced to wait behind those with a full trolley. In hospitals, priority is given to those with a more critical condition - we can also understand that.

有时，我们也容许一些特例。比如，我们欣然接受超市中的快速通道理念——只买一瓶饮料的顾客不应被迫排在那些推着满满一购物车货物的人的后面。在医院里，情况危急的人享有优先权——这些我们也可以理解。

But in most situations, we demand fairness. You’ve probably experienced mild queue rage yourself in fast food restaurants, watching people in the other line zoom ahead of you, cursing yourself for having chosen the “wrong” line.

但是在大多数情况下，我们要求公平。你之前可能在快餐店里经历过并不严重的排队怨气，看着其他队列的速度快过自己，便会咒骂自己选错了队列。

In order to solve this problem, the serpentine line was invented. Slate magazine’s website explains:

为了解决这一问题，一种“蛇形排队法”应运而生。《石板》杂志网站上解释道：

“The serpentine line funnels all customers into one big snaking queue, demarcated by ropes or barriers. When you reach the head of the queue, you are directed to the next available server, or teller, or customs official. The serpentine line isn’t always faster than multi-lines before an array of cash registers. But it offers important solace: you absolutely never have to see someone arrive after you and get served before you.”

“‘蛇形排队法’让所有顾客汇集在一条浩浩荡荡的蛇形队伍之中，中间用绳子或障碍物隔开。到达队首时，你将会被带到空闲窗口接受服务人员、银行柜员或海关人员的服务。在一排收银台前，蛇形队列并不比并列队形更快。但是它最大的慰藉在于：来得晚的人绝对不会排到你的前面。

In life, waiting is inevitable. But a better understanding of the psychology of waiting can help make it a bit more bearable. When all else fails, bring a book or a smartphone will also do.

生活中，等待是不可避免的。但是更好地了解等待心理可以让我们更有耐心。当这些方法都没用时，带上一本书或一部智能手机吧！