#LEARNED OPTIMISM EXAMPLES DRIVERS#

In the case of the dogs in the closed cages, even when the doors were opened, the dogs just stayed in the cage, endured the pain brought by the electric shocks until the pain stopped. However, dogs in closed cages stayed and just bore through the pain whimpering until the pain stopped. When given shock treatments, dogs in open cages could get out when they felt the jolt.

In another experiment, the dogs were given the same treatment but their cages were opened. These cages were locked so the dogs had nowhere to go.

Seligman conducted an experiment whereby he locked dogs in a cage and administered electric shocks to the dogs. He says that just as we can learn to be helpless, we can learn to be optimistic as well. We tend to become so helpless and think that things are beyond our control and there is nothing we can do about it. Seligman says that learned helplessness is one of the main reasons we get depressed. Martin Seligman attempts (and succeeds) in explaining one of the main causes of depression. These people manage to do so because they are optimists. “I don’t mind being wrong, and I don’t mind changing my mind”-Martin Seligman. The teachings of positive psychology are similar to the teachings of Mindset by Carol Dweck. Positive psychology believes in the abilities of the patient, does not blame them for the occurrences that have happened in their lives, but shows them that they have the power to create the life they want. This is the type of psychology that focuses on individual and society wellbeing and intends to improve the quality of life. The idea behind learned optimism is something Seligman defined as positive psychology. In this book, he introduces two ways of looking at life. Seligman founded positive psychology and has researched for decades to show how some people navigate through life’s challenges easier than others. This book shows why being optimistic can make you happier, healthier, and even more successful while pessimism can dim the light in your life. This is one of the most important books in psychology. I decided to write this summary to show how learned optimism can be obtained and how it is a factor in our mental health.

#LEARNED OPTIMISM EXAMPLES DRIVERS#

In her book about persistence, she counts optimism as one of the drivers of persistence and borrows her conclusions from Seligman’s research. I learned about Martin Seligman’s book while reading one of the most life-changing books, Grit by Angela Duckworth.

Learned optimism examples