This higher motivation was also shown in studies of college students (Solberg Nes, Evans, & Segerstrom, 2009). Motivation and performanceĪt work, optimism has been linked to intrinsic motivation to work harder, endure during stressful circumstances, and show more goal-focused behavior (Luthans, 2003).Īs an important contributor to employees’ wellbeing, it has been linked to improved overall happiness in the workplace, task orientation, solution-focused approaches, perseverance, and decision-making efficacy (Strutton & Lumpkin, 1992 Norman, Collins, Conner, Martin, & Rance, 1995 Podsakoff & MacKenzie, 1997 Chiok Foong Loke, 2001 Harter, Schmidt, & Keyes, 2003 Gavin & Mason, 2004). Compared to pessimists, optimists are also less likely to develop high blood pressure (Everson, Kaplan, Goldberg, & Salonen, 2000), suffer from stress-induced changes in immunity (Kubzansky, Sparrow, Vokonas, & Kawachi, 2001), and even develop heart disease in the first place (Brydon, Walker, Wawrzyniak, Chart, & Steptoe, 2009). Optimistic people are also less likely to need rehospitalization after a coronary bypass or repeat cardiac operations (Scheier et al., 1999 Helgeson, 2003 Cauley et al., 2017). Rather than trying to avoid, ignore, or withdraw from a health concern, optimistic people are more inclined to seek practical support, cognitively restructure, or reinterpret the situation positively, among other coping methods (Solberg Nes & Segerstrom, 2006). Optimists may also take a more approach-focused method of dealing with health stressors. Specifically, Radcliffe and Klein’s (2002) research studied 146 middle-age adults and found that those with high optimism were more informed about heart attack risk factors, as well as the role of other risk factors on their health: stress, alcohol consumption, nutrition, smoking, fat consumption, and exercise. Optimistic individuals also tend to be more aware of their health status and how to stay that way. Similar findings of lower distress have been reported in individuals undergoing treatment for breast cancer (Carver et al., 1999). In a study of head and neck cancer patients, optimistic patients reported a higher quality of life both before and after treatment, suggesting that their positive outlook buffered the effects of health-related distress (Allison, Guichard, & Gilain, 2000). Several studies illustrate the different ways that optimism positively impacts our health. 52) explanatory style definition, “The basis of optimism does not lie in positive phrases or images of victory, but in the way you think about causes.”įrom here, we can see where the idea of ‘learnability’ originated.Ī few benefits of optimism include the following. 879) defined optimism from a dispositional standpoint, as “an individual difference variable that reflects the extent to which people hold generalized favorable expectancies for their future.”Īccording to Seligman’s (2007, p. Optimism is often considered the opposite but can be thought of in different ways.Ĭarver et al. Pessimism has been defined as: “ anticipation of good or bad things to happen in the future” (Carver, Scheier, & Segerstrom, 2010). How people can learn to become more optimistic – learned optimismīefore examining the findings on optimism’s benefits, let’s consider exactly what the two entail.Its impact on health, wellbeing, and success.The individual benefits of optimism, compared to pessimism.Some of his earlier work began to consider how optimism and pessimism were related to how people explained the cause of challenges and adverse events, which set the stage for more studies into other subjects: His interest shifted, and he started to look into how we could condition individuals to be more optimistic instead (Peterson, 2000). Learned optimism is very much a positive psychology concept it’s the opposite of learned helplessness: a phenomenon whereby individuals believe they are incapable of changing their circumstances after repeatedly experiencing a stressful event (Abramson, Seligman, & Teasdale, 1978 Seligman & Garber, 1980 Maier & Seligman, 2016).Ĭoming originally from a clinical psychology background, and with a lot of his work centered on pessimism, Seligman became curious why some individuals don’t feel helpless even when conditioned to do so. The aim of positive psychology is to begin to catalyze a change in the focus of psychology from preoccupation only with repairing the worst things in life to also building positive qualities. It’s also the title of Seligman’s well-known book, which delves into the theory a little further. Put succinctly, learned optimism is a concept that says we can change our attitude and behaviors by recognizing and challenging our negative self-talk, among other things. Learned Optimism: Martin Seligman’s Book Summary.

What Is Learned Optimism in Psychology?.

Optimism examples in business