Pessimism Scale Research Articles

Chinese version of the Optimism and Pessimism Scale: Psychometric properties in mainland China and development of a short form.

This study aimed to validate the Chinese version of the Optimism and Pessimism Scale in a sample of 730 adult Chinese individuals. Confirmatory factor analyses confirmed the bidimensionality of the scale with two factors, optimism and pessimism. The total scale and optimism and pessimism factors demonstrated satisfactory reliability and validity. Population-based normative data and mean values for gender, age, and education were determined. Furthermore, we developed a 20-item short form of the Chinese version of the Optimism and Pessimism Scale with structural validity comparable to the full form. In summary, the Chinese version of the Optimism and Pessimism Scale is an appropriate and practical tool for epidemiological research in mainland China.

The relationship between music preferences of different mode and tempo and personality traits – implications for music pedagogy

The aim of this research was to examine the relationship between music preferences of different mode and tempo and personality traits. The survey included 323 students who had to fill out the following tests: questionnaire of music preferences, scale of optimism and pessimism and International Personality Item Pool for measuring Big Five personality traits. Results showed that female in comparison to male students reported a higher degree of music preferences, regardless of tempo and mode, while the male and female showed a higher degree of preference for musical fragments in the fast tempo and major key. Results of hierarchical regression analysis showed that emotional stability and optimism were significant predictors of preferences for music in fast tempo and major key, while openness to experiences, introversion and gender were significant predictors of preferences for the slow tempo and music in minor key. The authors suggest the importance of applying these results in creating the curriculum of music teaching.

Mental health, subjective well-being, and religiosity: Significant associations in Kuwait and USA

This paper explores the associations between mental health, subjective wellbeing, and religiosity among Kuwaiti and American college students. Our method involved recruiting two convenience samples of 154 Kuwaiti and 154 American undergraduates (28 men, 125 women in both samples), with a mean age of 20.8 yr. (SD = 2.4), and 21.8 (SD = 5.0), respectively. They completed the Arabic Scale of Mental Health (ASMH), the Rosenberg SelfEsteem Scale, the Arabic Scale of Optimism and Pessimism, the Hopelessness Scale, and selfrating scales assessing physical health, mental health, and religiosity. The scales were administered in Arabic to the Kuwaiti students and in English to the American students. Kuwaiti students obtained a significantly higher mean score on religiosity than did their American counterparts, whereas American students had higher mean scores on the ASMH, and the selfrating scales of both mental health and physical health. Significant correlations were found between the ASMH, selfesteem, optimism and religiosity (positive), whereas the correlations between these scales and pessimism and hopelessness were negative. Two factors were retained in both countries: “Mental health versus hopelessness” and “Selfratings of religiosity and health”. Predictors of ASMH were optimism, selfesteem and the selfrating of mental health in both countries and, in addition, hopelessness (negative) and religiosity in the American sample. 1. Correspondence: Email (david.lester@stockton.edu). 64 Ahmed Abdel-Khalek and David Lester

楽観・悲観性尺度の作成ならびに信頼性・妥当性の検討

This study reports about the construction of a bidimensional measure of optimism and pessimism (defined as positive and negative outcome expectancies), called the Japanese Optimism and Pessimism Scale (J-OPS), and examines its reliability and validity. The participants were college students. The results revealed the following: (a) the J-OPS had sufficient reliability and validity, (b) optimism and pessimism were bidimensional in structure, (c) the general pattern of correlations with external criteria of psychological well-being (positive and negative affectivity). After controlling for optimism and pessimism respectively, it indicated that these two constructs were partially independent of each other. Namely, optimism, but not pessimism, was found to be a consistent predictor of positive affectivity (psychological well-being), whereas pessimism, but not optimism, was found to be a predictor of negative affectivity (psychological distress).

Construction of the Optimism and Pessimism Scale for Japanese

Construction of the Optimism and Pessimism Scale for Japanese

Millon Behavioral Medicine Diagnostic (MBMD) Predicts Health-Related Quality of Life (HrQoL) Over Time Among Men Treated for Localized Prostate Cancer

Prostate cancer treatment presents multiple challenges that can negatively affect health-related quality of life (HrQoL), and that can be further compromised by maladaptive personality styles and psychological adjustment difficulties. This study examined the utility of a comprehensive psychosocial screening tool to identify psychosocial traits that prospectively predict HrQoL status among men treated for localized prostate cancer. The Millon Behavioral Medicine Diagnostic (MBMD) was administered to 66 men (M age = 68 years, 59% White) treated by either radical prostatectomy or radiotherapy along with standard measures of general and prostate-cancer-specific quality of life assessed at a 12-month follow-up. Higher scores on both summary MBMD Management Guides (Adjustment Difficulties and Psych Referral) and higher scores on personality styles characterized by avoidance, dependency, depression, passive aggressiveness, and self-denigration predicted lower HrQoL (β range = –.21 to –.50). Additionally, higher scores on the MBMD Depression, Tension-Anxiety, and Future Pessimism scales predicted lower HrQoL. Finally, higher scores on the MBMD Intervention Fragility and Utilization Excess scale also consistently predicted poorer mental and physical health functioning over time. These results point to the utility of the MBMD to help screen for potential impairments in mental and physical health functioning in men undergoing treatment for prostate cancer.

Moderating effect of optimism on emotional distress and seizure control in adults with temporal lobe epilepsy

Stress is a commonly reported seizure precipitant among individuals with epilepsy. Yet, the relationship between stress and seizure susceptibility remains unclear. This study examined the relationship between emotional distress and lifetime seizure load in individuals with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE), as well as the potential moderating effect of explanatory style on this relationship. Data were collected from 148 individuals with TLE. Scales 2 and 7 of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory were used as a measure of emotional distress, and explanatory style was measured using the Revised Optimism–Pessimism Scale. Elevated Scale 2 scores were associated with an increase in seizure load only in subjects with Full Scale IQ scores≥92. An interaction between emotional distress and explanatory style was not observed. Thus, for individuals with higher levels of intelligence, depression may be an important pathway in linking emotional distress to poor seizure control.

Low Pessimism Protects Against Stroke

The association between optimism and pessimism and health outcomes has attracted increasing research interest. To date, the association between these psychological variables and risk of stroke remains unclear. We examined the relationship between pessimism and the 7-year incidence of stroke. A random sample of 23 216 adults (9480 men, 13 796 women) aged 20 to 54 years completed the pessimism scale in 1998, that is, at study baseline. Fatal and first nonfatal stroke events during a mean follow-up of 7.0 years were documented by linkage to the national hospital discharge and mortality registers leading to 105 events. Unadjusted hazard ratio was 0.44 (95% CI, 0.25 to 0.77) for participants in the lowest quartile (a low pessimism level) when compared with those in the highest quartile (a high pessimism level). After serial adjustments for sociodemographic characteristics, cardiovascular biobehavioral risk factors, depression, general feeling of stressfulness, and ischemic heart disease, the fully adjusted hazard ratio was 0.52 (95% CI, 0.29 to 0.93). In this population of adult men and women, low level of pessimism had a robust association with reduced incidence of stroke.

Pessimism and hostility scores as predictors of patient satisfaction ratings by medical out‐patients

The purpose of this research is to determine whether a pessimistic or hostile personality style adversely affects satisfaction with out-patient medical visits. Many patient and health care provider demographic characteristics have been related to patient satisfaction with a health care encounter, but little has been written about the association between patients' personality characteristics and their satisfaction ratings. An eight-item patient satisfaction survey was completed by 11,636 randomly selected medical out-patients two to three months after their episode of care. Of these, 1259 had previously completed a Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI). The association of pessimism and hostility scores with patient satisfaction ratings was assessed. Among patients who scored high on the pessimism scale, 59 percent rated overall care by their physicians as excellent, while 72 percent with scores in the optimistic range rated it as excellent (p = 0.003). Among the hostile patients, 57 percent rated their overall care by physicians as excellent, while 66 percent of the least hostile patients rated it as excellent (p = 0.002). Pessimistic or hostile patients were significantly less likely to rate their overall care as excellent than optimistic or non-hostile patients.

OPTIMISM AND PESSIMISM IN KUWAITI AND OMANI UNDERGRADUATES

In this study we investigated cultural differences and correlates of optimism and pessimism in Kuwaiti (n = 600) and Omani (n = 600) undergraduates. All respondents completed the Arabic Scale of Optimism and Pessimism (ASOP; Abdel-Khalek & Alansari, 1995), the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II; Beck, Steer, & Brown, 1996), and the Kuwait University Anxiety Scale (KUAS; Abdel-Khalek, 2000). The ASOP displayed good internal consistency, a meaningful factorial structure and interpretable factors in both countries. It was found that optimism correlated negatively with the above scales, while the correlations of pessimism were positive, indicating the convergent validity of the ASOP. The Kuwaiti mean score on optimism was significantly lower than the mean of their Omani counterparts, and no significant cultural differences were found for pessimism.

Sibship Size, Birth Order, and Personaltiy among Kuwaiti College Students

In a sample of 460 (103 men, 357 women) Kuwaiti college students (M age=21.9 yr., SD=3.0), scores on the Arabic Scale of Optimism and Pessimism, the Death Obsession Scale, the Arabic Scale of Obsession-Compulsion, the Kuwait University Anxiety Scale, the Taoist Orientation Scale, and the Suicidal Ideation Scale were not associated with sibship size and birth order.

A survey of psychosocial attributes of Filipino patients with systemic lupus erythematosus

Aim: To describe various domains of psychosocial attributes among Filipino patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Methods: This is a cross-sectional survey of SLE patients seen at a tertiary centre in Manila, Philippines in 2005. All patients completed self-administered questionnaires: Beck Depression Inventory II (BDI-II), Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), and Optimism and Pessimism Scales. Spearman rank correlation coefficient was used to determine association between levels of depression and anxiety. Results: A total of 275 female SLE patients with mean age of 32.57 years ± 12.26 SD (range 19–68) completed the questionnaires. Various levels of depression, anxiety as well as optimism/pessimism were disclosed by patients. There was a significant association between degree of depression and anxiety, P = 0.000, but not with age at time of survey (P = 0.099) nor disease duration (P = 0.584). Areas of concern in the interpersonal domain included ‘irritability’, and ‘having none or lost interest in sex.’ In the socio-cultural domain, prevalent indicators of ‘indecisiveness’, ‘worthlessness’, and ‘self-criticism’ ranged from 42.7% to 47.7%. Descriptors of situational domain included guilt and punishment feelings, loss of energy, concentration difficulty, and tiredness/fatigue; notably 15.3% harboured suicidal thoughts. Conclusions: This survey among Filipino SLE patients further identified areas of concern in the various interpersonal, socio-cultural and situational domains which may significantly impact on patients’ and caregivers’ adjustment to the illness, and may thus influence the approach as well as overall response to management of these patients.

Religiosity and its association with positive and negative emotions among college students from Algeria

To explore the associations between religiosity and both positive and negative emotions and traits, a sample of 244 volunteer Muslim college students from Algeria was recruited. The students responded to five self-rating scales to assess religiosity, physical health, mental health, happiness, and satisfaction with life, in addition to the Arabic Scale of Optimism and Pessimism, and the Kuwait University Anxiety Scale. Religiosity and satisfaction with life were higher among women than men. Among men, religiosity was significantly correlated only with mental health. However, in women, religiosity was significantly and positively correlated with physical health, mental health, happiness, satisfaction with life, and optimism, whereas religiosity correlated negatively with both anxiety and pessimism. Factor analysis yielded a single bipolar factor labelled positive emotions and religiosity vs. neurotic tendency (anxiety and pessimism) in women. Two orthogonal factors were extracted in men: positive vs. negative traits of mental health, and religiosity. The present results are compatible with the wider literature on the association between religion and positive variables among a Muslim context.

Optimism and Pessimism in Kuwaiti and American College Students

Cross-cultural comparisons in optimism (O) and pessimism (P) are few. Kuwait and the United States have different languages, situations, history and culture. On this basis, there is good reason to hypothesise that there are significant differences between the two countries in O and P. To explore the differences in, and correlates of, O and P in Kuwaiti and American college students. Two samples of male and female undergraduates were recruited from Kuwait (N = 460) and the United States (N = 273). Their mean ages were 21.9 +/- 3.0 and 23.2 +/- 6.5, respectively. All respondents completed the Arabic Scale of Optimism and Pessimism (ASOP), the Suicidal Ideation Questionnaire, the Ego-grasping Scale, the Death Obsession Scale, the Kuwait University Anxiety Scale and the Arabic Obsessive-Compulsive Scale. Kuwaitis responded to the scales in Arabic, and Americans responded in English. The ASOP displayed good internal consistency, a meaningful factorial structure and interpretable factors in both countries. It was found that O correlated negatively with the above scale scores, while the correlations of P were positive, indicating the convergent validity of the ASOP. The Kuwaiti mean score on O was significantly lower than the mean of their American counterparts, and vice versa for P. The findings are explained in the light of previous results on personality and psychopathology questionnaires in Kuwaiti and American societies. There is a need to investigate O and P in different cultures.

The relationship between dispositional optimism, dispositional pessimism, repressive coping and trait anxiety

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between dispositional optimism, dispositional pessimism, repressive coping and trait anxiety. The Marlowe-Crowne scale (MC) and the Bendig version of the Taylor Manifest Anxiety Scale (MAS) were used to select repressor and control groups (N = 143, aged between 18 and 47 years), who subsequently completed a measure of dispositional optimism, the Life Orientation Test (LOT), which consists of two sets of items: optimism and pessimism. Repressors (high MC, low MAS) reported significantly lower pessimism than all other participants. When the pessimism scale was divided into high and low categories, there were significantly more repressors in the low pessimism group than the other low trait anxiety group, low anxious (low MC, low MAS). However, for the optimism scale the opposite pattern of results was found, with significantly more low anxious in the high optimism group than repressors. These results support the assertion that the pessimism and optimism scales of the LOT are not the same construct and should be measured separately. # 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

Replication of Optimism and Pessimism of Distance-Learning and On-Campus Students

The purpose of this study was to replicate a prior study showing distance-learning students scored predominately more optimistic and less pessimistic than on-campus students using the Optimism and Pessimism scale with 197 distance learning and 200 on-campus graduate students. t tests for independent samples indicated the expected significant differences.

Comparing Optimism and Pessimism of Students in Distance-Learning and on Campus

To assess whether distance-learning students scored more optimistic or less pessimistic than students on campus the Optimism and Pessimism scale was given to 73 distance-learning and 75 graduate students on campus. The mean differences between groups on both subscales were significant on a t test.

Assessing the dimensionality of optimism and pessimism using a multimeasure approach

Weighted least-squares confirmatory factor analysis and exploratory factor-analytic procedures were used to assess the dimensionality of three self-report instruments designed to measure optimism and pessimism: the Life Orientation Test (LOT), the Hopelessness Scale (HS), and the Optimism and Pessimism Scale (OPS). The LOT was found to be bidimensional, the HS unidimensional, and the OPS multidimensional. The HS was interpreted as measuring a unipolar pessimism dimension. Factor analyses performed on an item subset from the OPS that fit the definition of optimism and pessimism as generalized outcome expectancies also supported the two-dimensional model of optimism and pessimism. Differential correlations between separate optimism and pessimism indices and a measure of psychological stress provided partial further support for a two-dimensional model of optimism and pessimism.

The measurement of optimism and pessimism

Procedures employed in the development and validation of a new Optimism & Pessimism Scale are described, and information about test-retest reliability is reported. Internal consistency analyses and other data suggest that optimism and pessimism are not polar opposites and bring up questions about the intrerelatedness of the cognitive and affective realms. The magnitude of the correlation between pessimism and measures of anxiety suggests a link between this measure and the Negative Affectivity construct, and the potential relationships among optimism, pessimism, the Pollyanna Principle, and Positive and Negative Affect are discussed. Conceptually, it appears that optimism and pessimism may aid in psychological defense by helping to bind anxiety.

Comment on Kline's Note on “A Test of Some Old Concepts by Means of Some New Scales”

Howarth (4) intercorrelated scores on Kline's three scales for oral optimism, oral pessimism, and anal character syndrome with those on a series of primary personality factor scales (3). The oral optimism scale was related to sociability, the pessimism scale to anxiety, and the anal character scale to superego and suspicion. At least two (and perhaps all three) of Kline's scales might relate to Eysenck's (1) superfactors, and Kline's Freudian explanations might be invalid in view of Eysenck's high heritability coefficients. To decide the matter more precisely Howarth in an'unpublished study correlated scores on the three scales of Kline's not only to scores on scales of the Howarth Personality Questionnaire but to scores on the three Eysenckian superfanors. This study established that at least one of Kline's scales (his oral optimism scale) does have this problem. Even if the one Kline scale relates with an Eysenck scale there is a question of the composition of that Eysenck scale; is it unitary? Howarth (2), for a total sample of 653 female and 666 male students, item-analyzed and item-factored Eysenck's scales. The Extraversion scale was far less homogeneous than the Neuroticism scale. Of the 24 former items several correlated more highly with the Neuroticism scale than with their own scale (e.g., Would you say you were fairly self-confident?) and correlated lower with their own scale (e.g., When people shout at you do you shout back?). Eysenck is well-known for the applications of the Extraversion scale and for stimulating hundreds of researches. The few thorough analyses of his scales are not going to change chis; however, one w~nders as to the efficacy of this research if it is based on such a heterogeneous collection of items. In the unpublished research referred to above, Howarth's (3) scale for sociability outperformed Eysendc's scale as a marker, and his anxiety scale performed as well as Eysenck's longer neuroticism scale. If of Eysenck's scales are covered by two of Howarth's scales . . . eighteen scales are left for more adequate psychological explanation (4, p. 1040). Bur, if extraversion is a questionable superfactor, what are its componena? Sociability appears to be one, impulsiveness another, dominance and jocularity others. Apart from impulsiveness the genetic-heritability aspects of these components have not been explored so that one or the other may be responsible for the Kline-Eysenck correlation between scores on oral optimism and Extraversion. While both scales originate from different assumptions, there is much room for exploration, for example, if all of Kline's items and Eysenck's items were combined, what factors might emerge? This writer has performed item analyses on all three of Kline's scales, and they are even less homogeneous than Eysenck's Extraversion scale. For anyone having a concept to operationalize measuring that concept as sharply as possible is a primary task.