Seligman's Theory Of Optimism

War is then revealed as destructive to a soldier’s psychology. Soldier may often do anything to keep sanity amidst a never ending war. Soldiers will block out feelings in order to cope. Dismissal of emotional reaction and the dehumanization of soldiers

For many, pessimism is not ideal, and optimism is their route of choice, as it develops through the arising

In this world, there is no individual more tragic than the one who gazes into their future and is only able to see a perpetual cycle of despair and agony. War, in particular, has this incomprehensibly dark power—the ability to drive even the most cheerful among us into the oppressive void of depression. Indeed, the total and complete loss of hope is among the most destructive consequences of war on the human psyche. An expression of this phenomenon is visible in Paul Baumer’s statement regarding the true psychological state of soldiers. When reflecting upon the experience of being in the military, Baumer says “We are little flames poorly sheltered by frail walls against the storm of dissolution and madness, in which we flicker and sometimes almost go out...Our only comfort is the steady breathing of our comrades asleep, and thus we

In his article, The Power of Negative Thinking, Oliver Burkeman discusses the realities behind excessive optimism and the benefits to negative thinking. Specifically, Burkeman argues that positive thinking hinders the preparation and motivation necessary to tackle actual real world problems whereas negative thinking allows for such preparation. His argument’s strengths come from his constant use of logic in regards to his evidence whether it be the “fire walkers” in the first paragraph or the opinions of Barbara Ehrenreich in the paragraph nine. In short, Burkeman does a superb job of championing the benefits of pessimism through his criticism on positive thinking.

Lang, explains through a series of scientific studies that pessimism can sometimes be a better form of seeing life than optimism. Throughout the article studies are being done on different age groups, the youngest group always shows a “sunny” outlook on life while the middle aged group is logical and realistic. Optimism has shown health complications and mental issues in older people (Lang, 2013). I usually do not think negatively about life, but as an improvement I should start seeing life for what it truly is, unpredictable and inconvenient in order to prevent a distasteful lifestyle in the

Even though soldiers are able to distract themselves from the horrors that they witness on the front, war psychologically damages them and creates the “lost generation”. The young men find it increasingly difficult to think and act with the mindset of a civilian. In war, the men only experience despair, death, and fear, so their mind is enveloped by negative thoughts that

An article written by Kendra Cherry states, “By nurturing positive emotions, even in the face of terrible events, people can reap both short-term and long-term rewards, including managing stress levels, lessening depression, and building coping skills that will serve them well in the future” (Cherry). Optimism has allowed for people to deal with conflicts in a healthy way. Neuroscientist Tali Sharot in her book The Science of Optimism: Why We’re Hard-Wired for Hope argues that optimism provides an adaptive advantage. According to her, “Expecting our future to be good reduces stress and anxiety, which is good for our health. Researchers studying heart attack patients have found that optimists were more likely than nonoptimistic patients to take vitamins, eat low-fat diets, and exercise, thereby reducing their overall coronary risk” (Popova). Dealing with conflicts positively is better for your health and it decreases bad health

Many believe that you can only be optimistic if you are successful, as good things happening to you can cause a better mood. However, Seligman believed the opposite. He thought that having an optimistic outlook creates success. Things cannot go well for you if you always think on the bad side of things, therefore, if you are more optimistic, you will be able to bounce back faster from hardship and be more able to become successful once again. However, pessimism can also be learned. If a person believes that everything bad that happens is their fault, they will become more pessimistic and unwilling to try new things, as they believe they will mess up. This thought can be taught in young children. Often, children who are abused or bullied at a young age can develop a pessimistic outlook as they are told that bad events are their

The concept of dispositional optimism is one of the key constructs within the field of positive psychology (Carver & Scheier, 2014; Peterson & Chang, 2003). Carver and Scheier (2014) defined dispositional optimism as the global expectation that good things will be plentiful in the future and bad things will be scare. Optimism is a positive attitude toward life and a positive psychological characteristic associated with positive mood, achievement, physical health, perseverance, effective problem solving, good health, and even to living a long life and freedom from trauma. On the other hand, pessimism is linked to depression, failure, passivity, social estrangement, mortality, and morbidity (Chiesi et al., 2013; Peterson, 2000; Seligman,

There are times in this world when rolling out of bed and putting on a brave face is the only thing that seems sensible enough to get you through the day. You slurp down your morning cup of coffee, glare at yourself in the mirror, and wonder what’s the point of it all? Why am I living my life half exhausted wandering from place to place doing what I’m told when I’m told to make myself a living? This is exactly how a pessimist often thinks;, they tend to see only the worst in a scenario or believe that only the lowest possible situation will happen. I have chosen not to live my life like that, I have chosen to not only try to lead each day with a positive mind and a healthy attitude, but I have also decided to spread optimism to others by the simple gestures such as a smile. I will admit that at times being an optimistic person isn’t always easy because

Although the specialization of positive psychology has only been researched and practices since 1998, the study of happiness connects with the work of Maslow, Rogers, and Fromm. The roots of this specialization came from Martin Seligman who chose the theme the president of the American Psychological Association in the late 1990’s. Seligman was an avid student of Maslow’s work and realized that life cannot be full circle unless the person has a balance lives with happiness. During his time as president, Seligman wrote a book entitled, “Authentic Happiness” in which he describes a reality that finds most if not all psychological professionals focusing on mental illness. Seligman (1998) suggests that psychologist works to address the client’s

It is hope, he writes, that brought settlers to North America, that helped the first people avoid freezing in the Ice Age, and helped some survive the Holocaust. In history, Watkins emphasizes, one finds stories of people continuously succeeding in the face of hardship, stories that can help one maintain an optimistic mindset. Hope and optimism, once learned, can be as the essay suggests, “a shield against fate and it’s consequences” and the fuel one needs to keep going into the future, with the belief that everything will turn out

Positive Psychology is defined as “…the scientific study of human flourishing, and an applied approach to optimal functioning. It has also been defined as the study of the strengths and virtues that enable individuals, communities and organizations to thrive” (Gable & Haidt, 2005, Sheldon & King, 2001, as cited by Positive Psychology Institute). According to Martin Seligman, one of Positive Psychology’s pioneers, positive psychology consists of three major components- “pleasure and gratification”, “strength and virtue”, & “meaning and purpose”. He believes that the road to “lasting fulfillment” is a journey in which an individual must pass through each component in chronological order. (Seligman)

Being optimistic is the main principle for most people. We may often hear the statement about “be an optimist, not a pessimist!” shouted by people. Sometimes you do it for yourself too. When facing such a failure or problem, this will not only help to relieve your heart. Being optimistic will help someone to be healthy in physical and mental. An optimist will find the best way in any circumstance and hope for every good thing can come to him/her. You may have gone through thousands of hard times. However, if you are a born optimist then you will not care of anything destructing you.

Optimistic and pessimistic attitudes constantly affect the outcome of people's lives. In my life, I try to keep an optimistic attitude about the things I do because I know it will help lead me to more desirable ends. There have been many situations in which optimism has helped me through difficult times. Two areas in particular have provided me optimistic experiences: athletics