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Half Empty, Half Full: The Psychological Roots of Optimism
The author, a renowned research psychoanalyst, challenges the idea that optimism is genetic, arguing instead that experiences in the first three years of life often shape the neural pathways in the brain.
- GenresPsychology
272 pages, Hardcover
First published May 8, 2000
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
March 4, 2020
I was surprised to find out that it was less about self-improvement and more about developmental psychology... but that was a welcome surprise, honestly! It gets you thinking about the reasons for why we may struggle with pessimism. I don't think her solutions are all that helpful, but I think recognizing the issue is sometimes the biggest battle, and this helps with that pretty well. Quick read, too. Only confusing in some parts haha.
December 3, 2025
As Month Python would say, "Always look on the bright side of life." Enjoy it, after all you never know when the Ferris wheel is going to stop.
June 22, 2015
In this book, Susan Vaughan (a psychiatrist and psychoanalyst) explores optimism and pessimism and asserts that neither condition is innate.She describes research that shows that optimism comes from strong self-esteem, which comes from feeling in control, which is learned in infancy primarily through interactions with (surprise!) one's mother.
I guess a pessimist would read this book and be pissed at his/her mother for messing things up for him/her from the start. An optimist would believe that s/he is still able to change, even if mom got things wrong early on.
From Vaughan's description of what mothers need to do right ("use her power to affect the toddler's inner state in a way that shapes his behavior in a socially desirable direction...then...re-engage the child and repair the rupture in the relationship caused by her disapproval."), I figured out what my mother (and father too) probably did wrong. But instead of thinking "they fucked me up, I'm doomed," I realized that I wasn't born a pessimist as I'd always thought. This book made me realize I could think differently and change my outlook.
In chapter 1, Vaughan promises that "...chapter 7 will teach several specific ways to improve your current level of optimism." I thought this meant Vaughan would give the reader exercises to complete (maybe workbook style), but no.
The first suggestion Vaughan gives in chapter 7 (for people "overridden by disorders, such as depression, manic depression [wasn't "manic depression" already being referred to as "bipolar disorder" when this book was published in 2000?], panic disorders, and other anxiety disorders") is to take medication.
Her second suggestion involves "chang[ing] what we feel by changing how we think." While pessimists tend to see failure as their fault, but success as out of their hands, optimists "tend to see setbacks and bad events as related to temporary conditions and specific problems." Vaughn suggests "that perhaps shifting your thought pattern could also shift how you feel, including how you feel about yourself."
Basically, Vaughan maintains, "...train yourself to think like an optimist and you will gradually become one, with a resultant improvement in your moods and your view of yourself and others."
A second method of altering that Vaughan presents is know as "downward comparions," basically being thankful to not be someone less well off. "...[C]omparing ourselves with those who are less well off helps us to create and sustain the illusion that we are fortunate." (Vaughan is a firm believer in using illusion in order to life mood and encourage optimism.)
(Sidenote: I think downward comparison at least somewhat explains the popularity of the worst of the reality TV shows.)
Vaughan also encourages readers by saying, "[p]erhaps the most striking optimism-inducing research is that which provides a sure shortcut:If you don't feel it, fake it...But the bottom line is that by acting happier, even if it initially feels fake, you can gradually begin to feel happier as well."
She also mentions a variety of external stimulants (music, touch, smells) useful in modulating emotion and boosting optimism.
Her final suggestion for increasing optimism is engaging in psychotherepy.
The text of the book is followed by fourteen pages of notes and an index.
This is not an academic book. It is written for the masses (or at least the masses who have the time, energy, and inclination to change their outlooks in a positive way). The edition I have is 15 years old (I don't know if there's a newer edition available), so it's likely there's been new findings in the field of optimism research.
All in all, reading this book really helped me. Just learning that I'm able to change my own outlook boosted my optimism. Just learning that I was not doomed from birth to be negative has made me feel happier. Thanks, Susan Vaughan for giving me such helpful insight.
I guess a pessimist would read this book and be pissed at his/her mother for messing things up for him/her from the start. An optimist would believe that s/he is still able to change, even if mom got things wrong early on.
From Vaughan's description of what mothers need to do right ("use her power to affect the toddler's inner state in a way that shapes his behavior in a socially desirable direction...then...re-engage the child and repair the rupture in the relationship caused by her disapproval."), I figured out what my mother (and father too) probably did wrong. But instead of thinking "they fucked me up, I'm doomed," I realized that I wasn't born a pessimist as I'd always thought. This book made me realize I could think differently and change my outlook.
In chapter 1, Vaughan promises that "...chapter 7 will teach several specific ways to improve your current level of optimism." I thought this meant Vaughan would give the reader exercises to complete (maybe workbook style), but no.
The first suggestion Vaughan gives in chapter 7 (for people "overridden by disorders, such as depression, manic depression [wasn't "manic depression" already being referred to as "bipolar disorder" when this book was published in 2000?], panic disorders, and other anxiety disorders") is to take medication.
Her second suggestion involves "chang[ing] what we feel by changing how we think." While pessimists tend to see failure as their fault, but success as out of their hands, optimists "tend to see setbacks and bad events as related to temporary conditions and specific problems." Vaughn suggests "that perhaps shifting your thought pattern could also shift how you feel, including how you feel about yourself."
Basically, Vaughan maintains, "...train yourself to think like an optimist and you will gradually become one, with a resultant improvement in your moods and your view of yourself and others."
A second method of altering that Vaughan presents is know as "downward comparions," basically being thankful to not be someone less well off. "...[C]omparing ourselves with those who are less well off helps us to create and sustain the illusion that we are fortunate." (Vaughan is a firm believer in using illusion in order to life mood and encourage optimism.)
(Sidenote: I think downward comparison at least somewhat explains the popularity of the worst of the reality TV shows.)
Vaughan also encourages readers by saying, "[p]erhaps the most striking optimism-inducing research is that which provides a sure shortcut:If you don't feel it, fake it...But the bottom line is that by acting happier, even if it initially feels fake, you can gradually begin to feel happier as well."
She also mentions a variety of external stimulants (music, touch, smells) useful in modulating emotion and boosting optimism.
Her final suggestion for increasing optimism is engaging in psychotherepy.
The text of the book is followed by fourteen pages of notes and an index.
This is not an academic book. It is written for the masses (or at least the masses who have the time, energy, and inclination to change their outlooks in a positive way). The edition I have is 15 years old (I don't know if there's a newer edition available), so it's likely there's been new findings in the field of optimism research.
All in all, reading this book really helped me. Just learning that I'm able to change my own outlook boosted my optimism. Just learning that I was not doomed from birth to be negative has made me feel happier. Thanks, Susan Vaughan for giving me such helpful insight.
June 5, 2008
I really enjoyed learning about the fundamental differences between people who are pessimistic vs. optimistic. It felt less like a self help book and more like a book giving you information based on research. I'm using the information presented to instill optimism in my children. They didn't give specific ways to do this but the research teaches you what basic beliefs/concepts people believe that are either the basis of their optimism or pessimism. Very interesting.
August 30, 2007
Anecdotal, yet powerful in Susan's analysis.
If you think 'thinking positive' is just another thing that teachers say, you'll be surprised at all of the case studies and anecdotes that Vaughan has brought together.
Highly recommended.
If you think 'thinking positive' is just another thing that teachers say, you'll be surprised at all of the case studies and anecdotes that Vaughan has brought together.
Highly recommended.
August 9, 2012
Not crazy about her writing style but several key concepts were fascinating. LOVED the study data info... And it had a very enlightening section on how a mother's interaction with her infants can have long reaching effects. Thought provoking.
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July 23, 2008non-fiction,psychology,self-help,optimism
August 10, 2011
Great introduction to the benefits of optimism. I would not view this as self help as much as scientific understanding and support for the practice of optimism. Well written and entertaining.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews