VN January 2023

Vetnews | January 2023 15  You have a positive attitude about yourself and others.  You accept responsibility for mistakes but don’t dwell on them.  You don’t let one bad experience muddy your expectations for the future. An example of optimism is believing that there will always be opportunities to make things better tomorrow, even if you are experiencing challenges today. Causes of Optimism The exact causes of optimism are not fully understood, but several factors likely play a role. Genetics, upbringing, culture, and other environmental influences can influence optimism. According to one twin study, genetics account for around 25% of optimism. Another study found that age is an important determinant, with optimism increasing through young adulthood, levelling off between ages 55 and 70, and then declining in older adulthood. Research has also shown that optimismand pessimismare influenced by neurophysiology. Optimistic attitudes are associated with activity in the left hemisphere of the brain, while pessimistic characteristics are connected to activity in the right hemisphere. Explanatory Styles Many factors influence optimism, but whether you tend to be more of an optimist or more of a pessimist can often be explained by how you explain the events of your life. Explanatory or attributional style refers to how people explain the events of their lives. There are three facets of how people can explain a situation. It can influence whether they lean toward being optimists or pessimists: Stable vs Unstable: Can time change things, or do things stay the same regardless of time? Global vs Local: Is a situation a reflection of just one part of your life or your life as a whole? Internal vs External: Do you feel events are caused by you or an outside force? Optimist Explanatory Style Optimists explain positive events as having happened because of their own actions or characteristics (internal). They also see them as evidence that more positive things will happen in the future (stable) and other areas of their lives (global). Conversely, they see negative events as not being their fault (external). They also see them as being flukes (isolated) that have nothing to do with other areas of their lives or future events (local). For example, if an optimist gets a promotion, they will likely believe it’s because they are good at their job and will receive more benefits and promotions in the future. If they are passed over for the promotion, it’s likely because they were having a bad month because of extenuating circumstances but will do better in the future. Optimists • Attribute positive events to internal causes • Attribute negative events to external causes • Believe that good things will happen in the future • Tend to view bad things as mistakes or random flukes Pessimists • Attribute positive events to external causes • Attribute negative events to internal causes • Believe that bad things will happen in the future • Tend to see good things as mistakes or flukes Realists see things relatively clearly, but most of us aren’t realists. Instead, we tend to attribute the events in our lives either optimistically or pessimistically. Article >>> 16