Optimapessim

[jodawi]

Optimists tend to live 2-7-12 years longer than pessimists.

An optimist might say that having the right outlook is healthy. A pessimist might say that they're losing 2-7-12 years of life and are therefore quite right to be pessimistic.

Comments

[randomdreams.livejournal.com]

(although the causality is not clear from this: what if people who are dying of cancer are more likely to be pessimistic, and people who are rich and have health care are more likely to be optimistic?)

[jodawi.livejournal.com]

Hmm. Presumably researchers took such things into account. Or not.

*googles*
http://www.mult-sclerosis.org/news/Jan2000/Positivethinkersoutlivepessimists.html
m

Actually, from
http://www.swedish.org/17656.cfm
it looks like optimism is determined from the MMPI results, so it depends on whether MMPI measured innate optimism/pessimism personality traits or traits based on life experience. I can't imagine the latter had no impact on the results, so it looks to me like the claim that positive thinking leads to longer life is completely unproven, and it may be more the case that "a troubled early life leads to an earlier death". So people with troubled early lives that complain about it are told "just think positive! you'll live longer!", and if they do so their troubles go unaddressed, and so by thinking positive they might die even earlier.

[randomdreams.livejournal.com]

I can't say for SURE that people who have high-stress lives are more likely to be pessimistic but they sure die sooner and I wouldn't think they'd be MORE optimistic.

Another thought on causality

[firecat]

Depression is known to affect physical health and also to increase pessimism. I would be curious about the health (and depression/optimism) of people whose depression is well controlled by medication.

[epi-lj.livejournal.com]

Or they might argue that 2-7-12 years *more* of 'this crap' is not exactly a reward. ;)