A major ingredient to taking the pain out of a stressful day at work is a supportive partner at home, a new study has confirmed.

It may not seem like a groundbreaking1 conclusion but the study, from Florida State University, is the first to quantify the effects that a sympathetic ear can have at home and at work. Professor Wayne Hochwarter, author of the study, found that highly stressed employees had a 25 percent higher level of concentration levels if they had a harmonious2 home life. They were also 33 percent more likely to have positive relationships with colleagues, and a 20 percent higher level of job satisfaction. Previous studies have linked work-related stress to a range of mental and physical illnesses, such as depression and obesity3.

But this study shows how stress can be a vicious circle—adversely affecting the way employees perform at work,4 which can lead to even more workplace stress.

Professor Hochwarter said the mental and physical wellbeing of employees were at risk if they came to work still stressed from the day before. He said: “When youre still angry or upset from yesterdays stress, your workday will likely go in only one direction—down.”

And there were obvious benefits at home as well. Professor Hochwarters paper said employees with strong home support were 25 percent less likely to suffer from after-work fatigue5. Having an awareness of a partners daily work demands—such as deadlines, a lack of adequate resources and bad bosses—could ensure that couples always communicated, and a partner could see when their loved one was underplaying or exaggerating a problem.6 The ability to bring a partner back to the middle—building them up when they feel down in the dumps—also played a crucial role.7

1. groundbreaking: 突破性的。

2. harmonious: 和諧的。

3. obesity: 肥胖。

4. vicious circle: 惡性循環(huán)；adversely: 產(chǎn)生不利影響地。

5. fatigue: 疲勞，勞累。

6. underplay: 對(duì)……輕描淡寫；exaggerate: 夸大，夸張。

7. down in the dumps: 垂頭喪氣，心情沮喪；crucial: 決定性的。