Optimism

Not to be confused with Idealism.
"Optimist" and "Optimistic" redirect here. For other uses, see Optimist (disambiguation), Optimistic (disambiguation), and Optimism (disambiguation).
Half a glass of water, illustration of two different mental attitudes, optimism (half full) and pessimism (half empty)

Optimism is an attitude reflecting a belief or hope that the outcome of some specific endeavor, or outcomes in general, will be positive, favorable, and desirable. A common idiom used to illustrate optimism versus pessimism is a glass filled with water to the halfway point: an optimist is said to see the glass as half full, while a pessimist sees the glass as half empty.

The term derives from the Latin optimum, meaning "best". To be optimistic, in the typical sense of the word, is to expect the best possible outcome from any given situation.[1] This is usually referred to in psychology as dispositional optimism. It reflects a belief that future conditions will work out for the best.[2] As a trait, it fosters resilience in the face of stress.[3]

Theories of optimism include dispositional models and models of explanatory style. Methods to measure optimism have been developed within both of these theoretical approaches, such as various forms of the Life Orientation Test for the original dispositional definition of optimism and the Attributional Style Questionnaire designed to test optimism in terms of explanatory style.

Variation in optimism between people is somewhat heritable[4] and reflects biological trait systems to some degree.[clarification needed][5] A person's optimism is also influenced by environmental factors, including family environment,[4] and may be learnable.[6][page needed] Optimism may also be related to health.[7]

  1. ^ "optimism". Merriam-Webster. Archived from the original on November 15, 2017. Retrieved November 14, 2017.
  2. ^ "Definition of optimism in English". Oxford Dictionaries. Archived from the original on 2014-06-06.
  3. ^ Weiten, Wayne; Lloyd, Margaret (2005). Psychology Applied to Modern Life: Adjustment in the 21st Century. Belmont, Calif.: Thomson Wadsworth. pp. 96. ISBN 978-0534608590.
  4. ^ a b Bates, Timothy C. (25 February 2015). "The glass is half full and half empty: A population-representative twin study testing if optimism and pessimism are distinct systems". The Journal of Positive Psychology. 10 (6): 533–542. doi:10.1080/17439760.2015.1015155. PMC 4637169. PMID 26561494.
  5. ^ Sharot, Tali (December 2011). "The optimism bias". Current Biology. 21 (23): R941–R945. doi:10.1016/j.cub.2011.10.030. PMID 22153158.
  6. ^ Vaughan, Susan C. (2000). Half Empty, Half Full: Understanding the Psychological Roots of Optimism. New York: Harcourt. ISBN 0151004013.
  7. ^ Ron Gutman: The hidden power of smiling on YouTube