A major ingredient to taking the pain out of a stressful day at work is a supportive partner at home, a new study has 31 . It may not seem like a groundbreaking conclusion, but the study, from Florida State University, is the first to 32 the effects that a sympathetic ear can have at home and at work. Prof. Wayne Hochwarter, author of the study, found that highly stressed employees had a 25% higher level of 33 levels if they had a harmonious home life. They were also 33% more likely to have positive relationships with colleagues, and a 20% higher level of job satisfaction. Previous studies have 34 work-related stress to a range of mental and physical illnesses, such as depression and obesity. But this study shows how stress can be a vicious circle (恶性循环)—adversely 35 the way employees perform at work, which can 36 even more workplace stress. Prof. Hochwarter said the mental and physical wellbeing of employees were 37 if they came to work still stressed from the day before. Having an awareness of a partner"s daily work demands—such as deadlines, a lack of 38 resources and bad bosses—could ensure that couples always communicated, and a partner could see when their loved one was underplaying or 39 a problem. The ability to bring a partner back to the middle—building them up when they feel down in the dumps, or talking them down when they are overly agitated (不安的)—also played a 40 role.