FileSeeing the glass half full: A review of the causes and consequences of optimismVoir le verre à moitié plein : les causes et conséquences de l’optimisme
Section snippets
Part 1: what is optimism?
The anthropologist Lionel Tiger (1979, p. 18) defined optimism as “a mood or attitude associated with an expectation about the social or material future – one which the evaluator regards as socially desirable, to his [or her] advantage, or for his [or her] pleasure”. Optimism is therefore regarded as a cognitive, affective and motivational construct (Peterson, 2000). In other words, optimists think, but also feel positively about the future. Optimism as an individual psychological difference
Part 2: the benefits of optimism
Research on both optimistic explanatory style and dispositional optimism has shown that being optimistic is associated with a wide array of beneficial consequences. As an exhaustive summary of these findings is beyond the scope of this review, we only highlight here some of the most interesting findings that have shed light on ways in which optimism may constitute one facet of “optimal living” (Carver et al., 2010, p. 880).
Genetic and environmental influences
Why are some people natural optimists while others cannot help but seeing the glass as half empty? Researchers have identified many different factors affecting the development of optimism, although more research is needed to shed light on this topic (Gillham and Reivich, 2004). First, twin and adoption studies have shown that, in addition to environmental influences, genetic influences may affect the development of optimism (Mosing et al., 2009, Plomin et al., 1992, Schulman et al., 1993, Yuh
Conclusion: the case for flexible optimism
Research on optimism conducted over the past few decades has made significant contributions to the scientific understanding of psychological resilience and well-being. Additional research is needed to better understand the mechanisms explaining how optimism exerts its effects on outcomes such as subjective well-being, health, or success, among others. For example, it has been proposed that optimism may affect health by way of social relationships (Geers et al., 1998). In addition, future work
Disclosure of interest
The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest concerning this article.
Acknowledgements
Funding for this project was generously provided by Eva Kedar, Ph.D.
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