International optimism: Correlates and consequences of dispositional optimism across 61 countries

The current exploratory study sought to examine dispositional optimism, or the general expectation for positive outcomes, around the world. Method: Dispositional optimism and possible correlates were assessed across 61 countries (N = 15,185; mean age = 21.92; 77% female). Mean-level differences in optimism were computed along with their relationships with individual and country-level variables. Results: Worldwide, mean optimism levels were above the midpoint of the scale. Perhaps surprisingly, country-level optimism was negatively related to gross domestic product per capita, population density, and democratic norms and positively related to income inequality and perceived corruption. However, country-level optimism was positively related to projected economic improvement. Individual-level optimism was positively related to individual well-being within every country, although this relationship was less strong in countries with challenging economic and social circumstances. Conclusions: While individuals around the world are generally optimistic, societal characteristics appear to affect the degree to which their optimism is associated with psychological well-being, sometimes in seemingly anomalous ways. © 2020 Wiley Periodicals LLC.

• Autores: Baranski, Erica; Sweeny, Kate; Gardiner, Gwendolyn; Funder, David C; Camargo, Andrés
• Tipo de recurso: Article of investigation
• Fecha de publicación: 2020
• Institución: Universidad de Ciencias Aplicadas y Ambientales U.D.C.A
• Repositorio: Repositorio Institucional UDCA
• Idioma: eng
• OAI Identifier: oai:repository.udca.edu.co:11158/3898
• Acceso en línea: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/4055c0kh; https://doi.org/10.1111/jopy.12582
• Rights: openAccess
• License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/legalcode.es