Does nurture have anything to do with it? Can an optimist become a pessimist and vice versa? Is it really down to individual choice?
2006-12-11 00:21:04 · 16 answers · asked by Presea 4 in Social Science ➔ Psychology
Which one are you?
2006-12-11 00:24:49 · update #1
Ahhhhhhh...the old "nature vs nurture" question! I love it!
I'd say optimism and pessimism are determined much the same way extroversion and introversion are: you're born with a predisposition one way or the other. Then you can throw in environmental factors such as: how your parents disciplined or punished you; how much love you received by family members; positive vs negative reinforcement; religion; regarding temperament, example set by parents (primarily), siblings (secondary), then significant others (teachers, clergy, other close family members, etc.); and any other environmental factor that could help shape a positive or negative outlook.
In my opinion, the predominant factor is "nature," or what you're born with. The reason I say this is that I've seen numerous examples of people who live in horrid conditions or have been subject to hideous abuse and yet still maintain a positive outlook on life. They have hope in something greater than the sum of their experiences. Not only have I seen this at work in others, I see it in myself. I grew up with an alcoholic father who was horribly violent; he physically, verbally, psychologically and emotionally abused me and my siblings. But I'm an eternal optimist. Yet I have a sister who is a pessimist to the core. I see life as basically good and full of beauty; she sees life through the cloudy lens of cynicism. Why are we different? We grew up in the same home and were subject to the same abuses. My mom tells me I was a happy baby, but my sister was cranky and collicky for a long time. You can't teach a baby to be one way or the other...I think we were born with a particular temperament and the environment that reinforced my sister's pessimism is the same one that provided the "petri dish" for my optimism to flourish. To a degree, I *chose* to look past the ugliness of abuse to what awaited me when I left home.
The question is, did I choose to be positive despite my negative environment or did I look to the future with hope *because* I'm an optimist? It's a good question!
2006-12-11 00:48:56 · answer #1 · answered by Jen 6 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Nurture and life experience can both play a role in being generally optimistic or pessimistic. The underlying character of a person can make a difference, different people often react differently to the same situation. For example the train breaks down between stations, some people will worry about getting home late, others will enjoy the break.
People tend to be inclined to one side or the other, which I believe is the composite of nurture, experience and genetics. But the people can attempt to see the good in a bad situation or the other way round, it's partly a matter of effort, partly a matter of temperament.
Most people have a mixture of both, we can be optimistic about our favourite team winning and also be pessimistic about our politicians being worth their pay.
I prefer to be a realist, plan as a pessimist (prepare for the worst), enjoy the unexpected as an optimist. I take a book to read on the train, so if there are delays (and there often are), I can enjoy the book.
2006-12-11 00:42:56 · answer #2 · answered by Nebulous 6 · 4⤊ 0⤋
I think it is mainly genetics and only a small amount of nurture. A very bad childhood would make an otherwise positive child more pessimistic and vice versa.
It is not down to choice - tell that to all the poor people who are suffering from depression that they can choose to be happy, I don't think any of them would agree with you. It is a pretty insulting thing to dismiss someone's suffering like that.
I am a pessimist who tries my hardest to be optimistic, a never-ending uphill struggle.
2006-12-11 00:27:21 · answer #3 · answered by Velouria 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I think faith has a lot to do with it. I think optimists tend to be people who believe in a power greater than their own - they have faith and hope that even though they can't do everything themselves, somehow it will happen. I think pessimists tend to be the other way around because they lack faith and feel like they need to be in control of things and they recognize their own inherent weaknesses and realize they can't control everything. - - - I'm not suggesting that all the people who go to church on Sundays are optimists and the people that don't are pessimists - believe me, I know better than that. I'm just saying that I think you have to have a core belief in something other than yourself to be a true optimist.
It's the difference between "Seeing is Believing" and "Believing is Seeing".
2006-12-11 00:29:40 · answer #4 · answered by DGS 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Living!
2006-12-11 00:29:18 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
its the way parents and relatives nurture their kids.
a kid whose been shunned away from the"in" crowd cos der not cool enuf,etc..will most likeyl pessimst or pampered
a kid who was shown the dif btween rite an wrong,and was quite liked for ther qwalitys would be an optimist
2006-12-11 00:34:38 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 0⤋
People can be the biggest influence in your life whether you will be an optimist or a pesimist.
2006-12-11 00:22:33 · answer #7 · answered by Pinolera 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
i am an eternal optimist..i think some people are born miserable, and go around thinking bad things are going to happen, which they generally do.
2006-12-11 03:30:09 · answer #8 · answered by grumpcookie 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
People's brains are hard wired to be one thing or the other (A-type, B-type, or C-type personalities). then when you toss the person's life experiences into that, it creates the final product
2006-12-11 00:32:28 · answer #9 · answered by chris 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I'd say individual choice hunni
2006-12-11 00:22:23 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋