Optimism vs. Pessimism

One defining feature of a person's general outlook or attitude is whether they see setbacks as temporary and limited, or as all-encompassing.  According to Martin Seligman, a professor of psychotherapy at the University of Pennsylvania, "pessimists tend to believe they're to blame when bad things happen and that these bad things will persist and ruin other events in their lives." (1)  Optimists, on the other hand, see setbacks as temporary.

Now, whether an individual's general disposition is primarily inherited, or whether it is primarily influenced by the attitude/outlook of their primary caregiver(s) throughout their formative years is still open for debate.  It's most likely a blend of both and inherited disposition can change under influence by others and can also repel influence by others.  It can be quite difficult to separate characteristics we inherit from those which are the result of environmental factors although this is an area under continued study.  Traumas and other life events can go a long way towards whether any one individual tends towards optimistic thinking or pessimistic thinking.  But, how that individual learned to deal with traumas and life events, or how they learned to view them, would have an influence on how their general outlook develops, perhaps as much as, or more than, living through the event or trauma itself.  I think that the people closest to a developing child teach the child how to interpret life's events - what spin to put on them.  Was your parent open and trusting towards other people, or suspicious and antagonistic?  Was your parent generally agreeable, or basically disagreeable and bitter?  Did he or she see the silver lining in clouds or just the darkness?  Did they use pessimism as an attention-seeking mechanism?

Throughout life, how traumas are dealt with, and how life's day to day events are interpreted, have a great influence on whether more positive interpretive neural pathways are laid down, or more negative ones.  Does life wear you down, or do you rise to most challenges?  Individuals continue to be affected by experiences during their adult years and new neural pathways, whether positive or negative, continued to be forged.  It is not uncommon for individuals to become more optimistic as they age, nor is it uncommon for them to become more pessimistic.  The experiences we have, no matter what our age, affect both the mechanism and chemistry of the brain.*  All sorts of subtle workings continue to be at play in the brain, two of which are neurotransmitters and neuromodulators, and these are influenced by a whole host of other factors such as sleep, stress, diet and illness.  (It's complicated.)

No matter the mechanism, study after study seems to prove better health outcomes as people age for those with optimistic outlooks.  (Whether they are more optimistic because they are healthier, or whether they are healthier because they are more optimistic requires further study.)  Slowly, but surely, however, it seems that scientific studies are showing that thinking optimistically can make you mentally and physically healthier.  (Perhaps being an optimist is, in itself, a sign of good mental health.  Perhaps optimists look after themselves better and avoid more self-destructive behaviours.)

In Holland, researchers discovered after studying approximately 1,000 seniors, that the most optimistic among them had a 55 percent lower chance of dying from all causes and a 23 percent lower risk of cardiovascular death.  A study of law students at the University of Kentucky found that students who were more optimistic than their counterparts had stronger immune systems.  And, a study at the University of Pennsylvania which involved incoming freshman who participated in a series of workshops aimed at helping them cultivate a positive attitude, lowered their risk of developing depression.  Other research indicates that high levels of optimism are linked to better recovery from heart transplants and heart bypass surgery, protection from stroke risk, and even delayed onset of frailty among the elderly. (2)  And, another study has shown that seniors who still think of themselves as healthy despite the fact that they may have some issues with their health, have better health outcomes and stay stronger and more vital longer.

Researchers don't know exactly how optimism is a protective factor.  Further study is required.  What they do seem to now know is that the evidence they do have strongly suggests that pessimism is detrimental when it comes to disease development and outcomes of disease whereas optimism points towards added protection.

A 2009 study by The Social Issues Research Centre in Oxford, UK came up with what they have termed, an "optimism spectrum", which I thought might be of  interest here.  Some of you may find that the categories overlap.  For what it's worth, here are the categories - which category describes you?:
Unabashed optimist:  I am always very optimistic, whatever the circumstances
Contagious optimist:  I am always optimistic, and my optimism spreads to those around me
Concrete optimist:  I am optimistic, but I am realistic about the possible outcomes of events
Cautious optimist:  I am optimistic, but I am careful not to be complacent about my good fortune
Situational optimist:  My levels of optimism/pessimism change from situation to situation
Realist:  I am neither optimistic nor pessimistic, but simply realistic about the good and bad things in my life
Fatalist:  I accept that essentially I can't change what's going to happen to me, whether it's good or bad
Individualist:  I believe that essentially I have control over what's going to happen to me, whether it's good or bad
Pessimist:  I am generally pessimistic, whatever the circumstances. (3)

D.
*the changing nature of the brain throughout life is called  'neuroplasticity'.  Up until a couple of decades ago, it was thought that the brain was incapable of changing during the adult years, apart from changes induced by injury or disease.  (Like the old adage that you can't teach an old dog new tricks.)  It has been well-documented over the last several years, however, that you CAN teach that old dog some new tricks, and that ongoing experiences and learning does, indeed, change the brain.  Much is being written on this 'plastic' nature of the brain - on the ability for it to continue changing as we age, to continue laying down neural pathways and making new synaptic connections, based on what we learn and experience.

(1)  and (2)  Health:  Total Wellness For A Better Life, October 19, 2011, Chris Wadsworth, www.newsmaxhealth.com.
(3)  Optimism:  A Report from the Social Issues Research Centre, February, 2009, p. 22.