![]() The global-specific dimension refers to whether the cause of an event is one that will affect many areas of a person’s life or only one particular area.Ī pessimistic explanatory style involves attributing negative events to internal, stable, and global factors (e.g., “I failed my Spanish exam because I’m stupid”). The stable-temporary dimension refers to whether the cause of a particular event is one that will remain stable across time or is more transient in nature. The internal-external dimension refers to whether an event was due to a person’s own actions or was the result of some external force. In contrast, people who are free from depression engage in a form of cognitive distortion in which they emphasize positive information while overlooking negative information.Īccording to attribution theory, individuals attempt to explain the events that occur in their lives by “attributing” the cause to one of three dimensions: internal-external, stable-temporary, and global-specific. According to Beck, depression results from cognitive distortions involving a tendency to highlight negative information while ignoring positive information. The notion that cognitive styles bear a causal relationship to our affective experiences derives from Aaron Beck’s cognitive theory of depression. ![]() Optimism and Pessimism as Cognitive Styles Optimists appear to have a greater ability to make the best of a bad situation, and they appear to be better able to grow or otherwise benefit from negative life experiences. Furthermore, optimists tend to accept the reality of adverse situations more readily than pessimists. Optimists are more likely than pessimists to take direct action when dealing with problems, tend to be more planful when dealing with adversity, and take a more focused approach in their efforts to cope with problems. Optimists tend to remain more confident in the face of adversity than pessimists, and are more persistent in pursuing their goals. For instance, a college student who continues to struggle with biology courses in pursuit of the goal of becoming a physician, might, upon assessment of the situation, decide upon a more suitable career path. In contrast, a pessimistic individual might deal with the same situation by “giving up,” avoiding the situation (e.g., no longer attending class), and/or dropping out of college.Ībandoning a goal that is unattainable can be adaptive when doing so leads to adoption of a more suitable alternative. For example, an optimistic college student might deal with a poor grade on the first exam in Introductory Biology by meeting with the instructor and revising his or her study techniques in order to better prepare for subsequent exams. Optimists, who are more likely than pessimists to expect that they will be successful in achieving their goals, tend to persist in pursuit of their goals, despite adversity. This reassessment could lead to the identification of additional resources or alternative approaches to attaining the goal, or to abandoning the goal entirely. Individuals who experience adversity while pursuing a particular goal reassess the situation and the likelihood of success. The term expectancy refers to the probability a person attaches to the likelihood of attaining a given goal, and value refers to the value the person places on a particular goal.Īccording to the self-regulatory model, goals give meaning to people’s lives, but goals are subject to change, based on various forms of feedback. ![]() The expectancy-value approach assumes that behavior is goal directed. ![]() Carver view optimism and pessimism as personality traits and have derived a self-regulatory model based on expectancy-value theory to describe how these traits relate to human experiences. Optimism and Pessimism as Dispositional Traits ![]()
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