中文导读 流行歌曲是不是越来越不爱直接谈感情了？密歇根州立大学团队在《审美、创造力与艺术心理学》（Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts）期刊发表研究，分析230位艺人1947—2024年的38,467首歌曲，约30名研究助理人工核对了各艺人的作品目录。研究同时比较了同一艺人职业生涯内部的变化和不同时代艺人之间的差异：歌词中的积极与消极情绪词都在减少，提到家人朋友的内容也减少；与焦虑相关的语言增加，与悲伤相关的语言减少；时代之间的差异总体大于个人生涯内的变化。研究者原以为艺人年龄增长后歌词会更温暖，结果相反，因此推测艺术、文化或产业力量可能对歌词影响很大。结论只针对样本中的230位艺人。MSU Today 2026年10月16日发布新闻稿，Phys.org于10月17日转载；文中据这些报道改写。
正文 Do love songs sound different today than they did in your grandparents ’ time ? A large new study from Michigan State University suggests they do . Popular song lyrics have gradually become less open about feelings and relationships , both across generations of artists and within the careers of the same singers .
本段译文 今天的情歌听起来和祖父母那一辈时不一样了吗？密歇根州立大学的一项大型新研究表明确实如此。流行歌曲的歌词在表达情感和人际关系方面逐渐变得不那么直白，这一变化既出现在不同世代的歌手之间，也出现在同一批歌手的职业生涯之中。
The study , published in the journal Psychology of Aesthetics , Creativity , and the Arts , is the largest of its kind to examine lyrics . The team built a data set of 38,467 songs by 230 artists , covering music from 1947 to 2024. About 30 research assistants checked each artist’s songs by hand . Willie Nelson had the most songs in the collection , while Miles Davis had the fewest with lyrics .
本段译文 这项研究发表在《审美、创造力与艺术心理学》期刊上，是同类研究中规模最大的一项歌词分析。团队建立了一个数据集，包含230位艺人的38,467首歌曲，时间跨度为1947年至2024年。大约30名研究助理人工核对了每位艺人的歌曲。威利·纳尔逊在数据集中歌曲数量最多，而迈尔斯·戴维斯有歌词的歌曲最少。
Co -author Jan Brascamp , an associate professor of psychology , explained the design . Earlier work often asked whether music changes from decade to decade . Far fewer studies asked whether the same artists change during their careers . By looking at both , the team hoped to separate changes within artists from wider shifts in culture and the music industry
本段译文 合著者、心理学副教授扬·布拉斯坎普解释了研究设计。以往研究常常追问音乐是否随着年代而变化，但很少有研究探讨同一批艺人在职业生涯中是否发生变化。通过同时考察这两个方面，团队希望把艺人自身的变化与文化和音乐产业中更广泛的转变区分开来。
Both views pointed the same way . Over time , lyrics used fewer positive words and fewer negative words , and they mentioned family and friends less often . Not every feeling faded , however . Language linked to anxiety increased , while words linked to sadness declined . Differences between artists from different eras were generally larger than the changes inside one artist’s career
本段译文 两种视角指向同一方向。随着时间推移，歌词中的积极词汇和消极词汇都变少了，提到家人和朋友的次数也减少了。不过，并非所有情绪都在淡化：与焦虑相关的语言增加了，而与悲伤相关的词语减少了。不同时代艺人之间的差异，总体上大于单个艺人职业生涯内部的变化。
Some names stood out . Classic soul and early rock acts such as Marvin Gaye and The Supremes ranked high on positive emotion and social references . Artists in more countercultural styles , like Nine Inch Nails and Sex Pistols , often appeared near the bottom . Older country and blues singers , including Hank Williams and Patsy Cline , were strongly represented in the negative and sad categories .
本段译文 一些名字格外突出。马文·盖伊和至上女声组合等经典灵魂乐和早期摇滚乐艺人，在积极情绪和社会关系提及方面排名靠前。九寸钉和性手枪等更具反主流文化色彩的艺人，常常排在末端。汉克·威廉姆斯和佩茜·克莱恩等较早期的乡村与布鲁斯歌手，在消极和悲伤类别中占比很高。
The career pattern surprised the researchers Lead author Logan Gibson noted that people often become better at managing emotions and care more about close relationships as they age . So the team expected warmer lyrics over time . Instead , positive emotion and social references declined . Gibson said this suggests artistic , cultural or industry forces may strongly shape what songwriters put into words .
本段译文 职业生涯中的变化模式让研究人员感到意外。第一作者洛根·吉布森指出，人们随着年龄增长往往更善于调节情绪，也更重视亲密关系。因此团队原本预期歌词会随时间变得更温暖。然而，积极情绪和社会关系提及反而减少了。吉布森表示，这表明艺术、文化或产业层面的力量可能在很大程度上塑造了词作者写下的内容。
Co -author William Chopik argued that music is more than entertainment , because people use songs to manage moods , understand themselves and feel connected to others . Lyrics , he said , record what artists , and possibly their audiences , choose to talk about . The study covers only these 230 artists , but the team hopes collections of songs , books , films and social media can show how emotional expression changes over time .
本段译文 合著者威廉·乔皮克认为，音乐不只是娱乐，因为人们用歌曲来调节情绪、认识自我，并与他人产生联结。他说，歌词记录了艺人——也可能包括他们的听众——选择谈论什么。这项研究只涵盖这230位艺人，但团队希望，借助歌曲、书籍、电影和社交媒体等大规模资料，能够看出情感表达如何随时间变化。
新闻来源