Dispositional Optimism and Physical Well‐Being: The Influence of Generalized Outcome Expectancies on Health

1987/06/01 by Michael E Scheier, Charles S. Carver · 8 citations
Psychology · Environmental Science · Social Sciences · #Optimism, Hope, and Well-being #Climate Change and Health Impacts #Religion, Spirituality, and Psychology

paper · doi:10.1111/j.1467-6494.1987.tb00434.x

openalex publication_date 1987/06/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/08

Abstract

This article explores the implications that dispositional optimism holds for physical well-being. Research is reviewed that links optimism to a number of different positive health-relevant outcomes, ranging from the development of physical symptoms to recovery from coronary artery bypass surgery. Additional findings are described which suggest that these beneficial effects are partly due to differences between optimists and pessimists in the strategies that they use to cope with stress. A number of other potential mediators are also discussed, including some that are physiologic in nature. The article closes with a discussion of the relationships between our own theoretical account of the effects of optimism and several other conceptual approaches.

Citations

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Cited by

• Can Optimism Decrease the Risk of Illness and Disease Among the Elderly?
• The future of optimism.
• Effects of optimism on psychological and physical well-being: Theoretical overview and empirical update
• Dispositional Optimism and All-Cause and Cardiovascular Mortality ina Prospective Cohort of Elderly Dutch Men and Women
• Neural mechanisms mediating optimism bias
• Illusion and well-being: A social psychological perspective on mental health.
• Analysing university students’ life satisfaction through their socioemotional factors
• Optimism [wikipedia]