getting up again: For a more expansive discussion of how hope can be conceptualized, see Kevin L. Rand, Allison D. Martin, and Amanda M. Shea, “Hope, but Not Optimism, Predicts Academic Performance of Law Students Beyond Previous Academic Achievement,” Journal of Research in Personality 45 (2011): 683–86. Also see Shane J. Lopez, Making Hope Happen: Create the Future You Want for Yourself and Others (New York: Atria Books, 2013).
major in—neurobiology: At Harvard until 2006, you actually declared your “concentration” (which is Harvard’s terminology for “major”), in the spring of your freshman year and at the same time mapped out every class you intended to take. My official concentration was the neurobiology track within biology, since neurobiology as a separate concentration was not created until years later.
the punishments to stop: Steven F. Maier and Martin E. Seligman, “Learned Helplessness: Theory and Evidence,” Journal of Experimental Psychology 105 (1976): 3–46. The seminal studies on learned helplessness actually had a triadic design, meaning that there was a third condition: dogs who received no shock at all. In general, these dogs behaved similarly to those who were subjected to stress with control. Some of the material in this chapter is from an interview between Seligman and the author, July 20, 2015. See also Martin E. P. Seligman, Learned Optimism: How to Change Your Mind and Your Life (New York: Pocket Books, 1990).
practical antidotes for depression: For more information on Aaron Beck, see www.beckinstitute.org.
distinguish optimists from pessimists: Christopher Peterson et al., “The Attributional Style Questionnaire,” Cognitive Therapy and Research 6 (1982): 287–300. See also Lyn Y. Abramson, Gerald I. Metalsky, and Lauren B. Alloy, “Hopelessness Depression: A Theory-Based Subtype of Depression,” Psychological Review 96 (1989): 358–72.
suffer from depression and anxiety: Peter Schulman, Camilo Castellon, and Martin E. P. Seligman, “Assessing Explanatory Style: The Content Analysis of Verbatim Explanations and the Attributional Style Questionnaire,” Behavioural Research and Therapy 27 (1989): 505–9.
drop out of school: Leslie P. Kamen and Martin E. P. Seligman, “Explanatory Style Predicts College Grade Point Average” (unpublished manuscript, 1985). Christopher Peterson and Lisa C. Barrett, “Explanatory Style and Academic Performance Among University Freshman,” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 53 (1987): 603–7.
stay healthier: Toshihiko Maruto, Robert C. Colligan, Michael Malinchoc, and Kenneth P. Offord, “Optimists vs. Pessimists: Survival Rate Among Medical Patients Over a 30-Year Period,” Mayo Clinic Proceedings 75 (2000): 140–43. Christopher Peterson, Martin E. P. Seligman, “Pessimistic Explanatory Style Is a Risk Factor for Physical Illness: A Thirty-Five-Year Longitudinal Study,” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 55 (1988): 23–27.
satisfied with their marriages: Karen J. Horneffer and Frank D. Fincham, “Construct of Attributional Style in Depression and Marital Distress,” Journal of Family Psychology 9 (1995): 186–95. See also, Horneffer and Fincham, “Attributional Models of Depression and Distress,” Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin 22 (1996): 678–89.
sell about 25 percent more insurance: On optimism and sales, see Martin E. P. Seligman and Peter Schulman, “Explanatory Style as a Predictor of Productivity and Quitting Among Life Insurance Sales Agents,” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 50 (1986): 832–38. Shulman, “Explanatory Style.” See also Peter Schulman, “Applying Learned Optimism to Increase Sales Productivity,” Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management 19 (1999): 31–37.
swim in his or her best event: Martin E. P. Seligman, “Explanatory Style as a Mechanism of Disappointing Athletic Performance,” Psychological Science 1 (1990): 143–46.
“I will just carry on”: Lacey, interview.
could be the target of therapy: Aaron T. Beck, A. John Rush, Brian F. Shaw, and Gary Emery, Cognitive Therapy of Depression (New York: Guilford Press, 1979). Also note that, in the same era, Albert Ellis developed a similar approach. So Beck and Ellis are jointly recognized as pioneers in what is now commonly referred to as cognitive behavioral therapy.
longer-lasting in its effects: Robert J. DeRubeis et al., “Cognitive Therapy vs Medications in the Treatment of Moderate to Severe Depression,” Archives of General Psychiatry 62 (2005): 409–16. Steven D. Hollon et al., “Prevention of Relapse Following Cognitive Therapy vs Medications in Moderate to Severe Depression,” Archives of General Psychiatry 62 (2005): 417–22. Some patients struggle with the aspect of CBT that involves trying to talk themselves out of their negative self-talk. These patients say things like: “In my head, I know it’s not fair to call myself a loser. I’m labeling myself, I’m engaging in all-or-nothing thinking. But in my heart, part of me still feels like a loser—like I’ll never be good enough.” A new form of CBT, acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), addresses these concerns. In ACT, the goal is simply to notice any negative self-talk and accept that it exists, while not letting it control your actions.
“Relentless pursuit”: Information on Teach For America’s mission and history can be found at www.teachforamerica.org.
optimistic teachers were grittier: Claire Robertson-Kraft and Angela L. Duckworth, “True Grit: Perseverance and Passion for Long-term Goals Predicts Effectiveness and Retention Among Novice Teachers,” Teachers College Record (1970) 116 (2014): 1–24.
one of Carol’s first studies: Carol S. Dweck, “The Role of Expectations and Attributions in the Alleviation of Learned Helplessness,” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 31 (1975): 674–85.
assess a person’s theory of intelligence: This measure was developed by Carol Dweck, Sheri Levy, Valanne MacGyvers, C.Y. Chiu, and Ying-yi Hong. For interested readers, I highly recommend Carol Dweck, Mindset: The New Psychology of Success (New York: Ballantine Books, 2008).
positive social relationships: See Carol S. Dweck, “Mindsets and Human Nature: Promoting Change in the Middle East, the Schoolyard, the Racial Divide, and Willpower,” American Psychologist (2012): 614–22.
persist through college: Brian Galla et al., “Intellective, Motivational, and Self-Regulatory Determinants of High School Grades, SAT Scores, and College Persistence” (manuscript under review, 2015).
KIPP Schools: For more information on KIPP, see www.kipp.org.
Promotes Growth Mindset and Grit: This thesaurus was originally developed by psychologist David Yeager, whom I thank for this age-general revision. On generic statements, see Daeun Park et al., “How Do Generic Statements Impact Performance? Evidence for Entity Beliefs,” Developmental Science (in press, 2015). And finally, on the importance of a “genuine” growth mindset, see Carol S. Dweck, “Carol Dweck Revisits the ‘Growth Mindset’?” Education Week, September 22, 2015.
“never failed to imitate them”: James Baldwin, Nobody Knows My Name (New York: Vintage Books, 1993), 61–62.
inadvertently inculcated a fixed mindset: Daeun Park et al., “Young Children’s Motivational Frameworks and Math Achievement: Relation to Teacher-Reported Instructional Practices, but Not Teacher Theory of Intelligence,” Journal of Educational Psychology (in press, 2015).
parents react to mistakes: Kyla Haimovitz and Carol S. Dweck, “What Predicts Children’s Fixed and Growth Mindsets? Not Their Parent’s Views of Intelligence But Their Parents’ Views of Failure” (manuscript under review, 2015).
apply in a corporate setting: Harvard Business Review Staff, “How Companies Can Profit from a ‘Growth Mindset’?” Harvard Business Review, November 2014.