Optimism and Emotional Support:Exploring Positive and Negative Outcomes in Students

Melina Condrenmcondren@yorku.ca

Student Stress•Students report stressors such as

coursework, isolation, worries about job prospects, etc.

•76% of students report feeling overwhelmed (American College Health Association, 2001).

•First-year students face a variety of additional stressors during the transition from high school to university.

Transactional Model of Stress(Lazarus & Folkman)

External Stressor

Primary Appraisal

Secondary Appraisal

Stress and Coping

Positive Resources

• Internal resources: optimism, psychological control, self-esteem.

•External resources: money, time, social support.

•Positive psychology (Seligman).▫Strengths rather than weaknesses▫Prevention rather than cure▫Positive rather than negative outcomes

Optimism

•Dispositional optimism is the generalized expectation of positive outcomes.

•Optimism can be learned.

•Unrealistic optimism can lead to negative mental and physical health outcomes.

Social Support

•Instrumental support ▫Tangible resources

•Informational support▫Identifying, understanding, and coping

with problems

•Emotional support▫Empathy, acceptance, caring, esteem

Optimism and Emotional Support•Optimism and emotional support appear

to be related.•Optimists may use support more

effectively.•Optimists report greater levels of support

than pessimists.▫Do they receive more support than

pessimists?▫Are they more optimistic about their

support networks?

My projects•Three projects examining student well-being.•68 first-year students.•Data collected at two time points: beginning

and end of fall semester.•Variables examined included optimism,

emotional support, vigor, depression, and proactive coping.

•Examined how optimism and emotional support act together to promote positive outcomes.

Vigor

•Vigor is characterized by a high degree activity, energy, mental resilience, stamina, and persistence when problems arise.

•Vigor is related to positive mental and physical health outcomes.

Vigor, Optimism and Emotional Support

•Emotional support is a mediator of optimism on vigor.

Emotional Support

Optimism Vigor

Depression

•High rates of depression are commonly found in undergraduate samples.

•22% students report having been unable to function because of depression (American College Health Association, 2001)

•Depression in students has been linked to cognitive symptoms, motivational symptoms, social problems, alcohol abuse, and increased suicide risk.

Depression, Optimism and Emotional Support

•Emotional support is a mediator of optimism on depression.

Emotional Support

Optimism Depression

Reactive vs. Proactive CopingReactive Coping Proactive Coping

• Takes place after a stressor

• Aims to compensate for loss

• Risk management

• Perceived threat

• Takes place before a stressor

• Aims to build resources

• Goal management

• Perceived challenge

Proactive Coping, Optimism and Emotional Support

•Optimism leads to increased emotional support, which in turn leads to increased proactive coping.

OptimismEmotional Support

Proactive Coping

Summary: Promoting Positive Outcomes•These studies suggest that optimism leads

to increased emotional support, which in turn leads to various positive outcomes.

•However, we cannot infer causality.

•Why might optimism lead to increased support?

•How can individuals develop these positive resources?

Questions?