Is it best to expect the worst?
Psychologists test long-held theory of emotional cushioning.
Margaret Marshall of Seattle Pacific University and Jonathon Brown of the University of Washington, Seattle first asked more than 80 college students to fill in questionnaires that measured their general emotional outlook on life - whether bright or gloomy. The students then practiced a set of moderately difficult word-association puzzles on a computer. They then rated how well they expected to perform on a second set of such problems.
The researchers then gave half the students problems that were slightly easier than the first set, while half got harder puzzles. This ensured that the students' performances would either exceed, or fall short of, their expectations. Afterwards, the subjects filled in a questionnaire to measure their emotional reaction, such as how disappointed or ashamed they felt.
Students who expected to do badly, the researchers found, actually felt worse when they messed up than those who predicted they would do well but similarly botched their test.
The study, published in Cognition and Emotion1, suggests that a person's reaction to disappointment or failure is determined mainly by their general outlook on life. …
-----------
Let’s start with the title: Is it best to expect the worst? That might lead you to expect findings that could guide you to a course of action. But later you see the suggestion that a person's reaction to disappointment or failure is determined mainly by their general outlook on life. If that is so, then the person’s expectation is probably also determined by that general outlook. The expectation, then, does not cause the reaction. It is simply another expression of the same general outlook. Any useful course of action would have to come from a change in that general outlook.
Where would that general outlook come from? And how general would it be? One source, of course, would be experience. People know where they have been successful. But that would not be a general outlook. A person would be optimistic in areas of previous success. And pessimistic in areas of previous defeat. If possible, the person would avoid the latter areas.
Sometimes people (students will understand) cannot avoid areas they find difficult because of demands from long term goals. What then? Well, let’s step outside of feel-good issues for a moment and get real. The people will either find a way to succeed or find other goals that are easier to reach. My suggestion is to call on the Vulcan and the Engineer. Use defeat as a learning experience. Apply Troubleshooting. Here are a few Bounce-Back slogans that people have found useful.
Use problem-solving for defeats. Save emotion for successes. And expect both. In natural order.
Margaret Marshall of Seattle Pacific University and Jonathon Brown of the University of Washington, Seattle first asked more than 80 college students to fill in questionnaires that measured their general emotional outlook on life - whether bright or gloomy. The students then practiced a set of moderately difficult word-association puzzles on a computer. They then rated how well they expected to perform on a second set of such problems.
The researchers then gave half the students problems that were slightly easier than the first set, while half got harder puzzles. This ensured that the students' performances would either exceed, or fall short of, their expectations. Afterwards, the subjects filled in a questionnaire to measure their emotional reaction, such as how disappointed or ashamed they felt.
Students who expected to do badly, the researchers found, actually felt worse when they messed up than those who predicted they would do well but similarly botched their test.
The study, published in Cognition and Emotion1, suggests that a person's reaction to disappointment or failure is determined mainly by their general outlook on life. …
-----------
Let’s start with the title: Is it best to expect the worst? That might lead you to expect findings that could guide you to a course of action. But later you see the suggestion that a person's reaction to disappointment or failure is determined mainly by their general outlook on life. If that is so, then the person’s expectation is probably also determined by that general outlook. The expectation, then, does not cause the reaction. It is simply another expression of the same general outlook. Any useful course of action would have to come from a change in that general outlook.
Where would that general outlook come from? And how general would it be? One source, of course, would be experience. People know where they have been successful. But that would not be a general outlook. A person would be optimistic in areas of previous success. And pessimistic in areas of previous defeat. If possible, the person would avoid the latter areas.
Sometimes people (students will understand) cannot avoid areas they find difficult because of demands from long term goals. What then? Well, let’s step outside of feel-good issues for a moment and get real. The people will either find a way to succeed or find other goals that are easier to reach. My suggestion is to call on the Vulcan and the Engineer. Use defeat as a learning experience. Apply Troubleshooting. Here are a few Bounce-Back slogans that people have found useful.
Use problem-solving for defeats. Save emotion for successes. And expect both. In natural order.
posted by Selby Evans at 3:41 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home