1. Optimism 1.1 Definitions 1.2 Benefits and drawbacks 1.3 Genetics of optimism 1.4 Cultural differences 2. Pessimism 2.1 Definitions 2.2 Catastrophising 2.3 Theories of pessimism 2.4 Benefits and drawbacks 2.5 Genetics of pessimism 3. Optimal balance 3.1 Theories of optimal balance 3.2 Situational factors 3.3 Mindfulness 3.4 Practical exercises 4. Clinical applications 5. History and cultural ...

The combination of less positive and more negative expectations for the future (i.e., lower optimism and higher pessimism) increases risk for disease and early mortality. We tested the possibility that expectancies might influence health outcomes by altering the rate of biological aging, specifically of the immune system (immunosenescence). However, no studies to date have examined associations...

Using data from the 1995 Detroit Area Study (N=1106) this paper finds that black adults report significantly worse self-rated health when compared to whites with similar levels of self-reported morbidity. This relationship, called health pessimism, persists despite statistical controls for age, gender, socioeconomic status, health care access, and health related behaviors. Interpersonal maltrea...

Pessimism, a general tendency toward negative expectancies, is a risk factor for depression and also heart disease, stroke, and reduced cancer survival. There is evidence that individuals with higher lead exposure have poorer health. However, low socioeconomic status (SES) is linked with higher lead levels and greater pessimism, and it is unclear whether lead influences psychological functionin...

The authors tested whether dispositional pessimism would predict withdrawal from social activities among women treated for breast cancer. In a cross-sectional sample 3-12 months postsurgery, disruption of social and recreational activities (measured by the Sickness Impact Profile) correlated with concurrently assessed pessimism. This association appeared mediated by emotional distress and fatig...

This paper reports results from a unique two-stage experiment designed to examine the spillover effects of optimism and pessimism. In stage 1, we induce optimism or pessimism onto subjects by randomly assigning a high or low piece rate for performing a cognitive task. We find that participants receiving the low piece rate are significantly more pessimistic with respect to performance on this ta...

Individual differences in characteristics such as optimism, pessimism, and coping responses have been shown to contribute to variability in distress during stressful situations. However, the interrelationships among these characteristics are not well established. The purpose of this study was to investigate the interrelations among optimism, pessimism, and coping in predicting distress levels a...

OBJECTIVE The relationship between personality and life span is not well understood, and no study to date has examined genetic influences underlying this relationship. The present study aimed to explore the phenotypic and genetic relationship between personality and life span, as well as genetic influences on all-cause mortality. METHODS Prospective community-based study including 3752 twin i...

Individual differences in dispositional pessimism and choice of coping strategy on performance and stress, in target detection were investigated. The results were consistent with prior research indicating that higher levels of pessimism were associated with higher levels of stress and less effective coping strategies. Similarly, pessimism predicted emotion focused coping only in tasks with spat...