EDUC10057 Lecture Notes - Lecture 7: Explanatory Style, Learned Helplessness, Communication
10 Jun 2018
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EDUC10057 – WELLBEING, MOTIVATION, & PERFORMANCE
LECTURE 7 – RESILIENCE
Resilience: broad abilities in constructively & positively adapting to risk, adversity, or a monumental
negative event. A pattern of positive adaptation. Ability to ‘bounce back’, but also ‘bounce forwards’
• Characteristics of resilient children:
• Nurturing parent / caregiver
• Social / communication skills, at least 1 close
friend, & the desire to help others
• Creative outlets, activities, & hobbies
• Optimistic
• Families with religious beliefs
• Theoretical models:
• Explanatory Style: (Seligman) the causal attribution me make to explain why an event occurred
• Pessimistic explanatory style: see bad events as permanent & catastrophic. Is pervasive &
personal. Prone to restlessness & giving up (e.g. ‘I failed b/c I’m stupid)
• Leads to reduced energy for persistence & compromised health
• Optimistic explanatory style: see bad events as temporary challenges to overcome. Limited,
& not only due to you. Bounce back quickly (‘now I know what to fix to smash the exam’)
• Builds energy & resilience, & promotes health
• Learned helplessness / learned optimism:
• Not all of the dogs became helpless
• Of the dogs / humans who became helpless: some bounced back right away & others never
recovered. Some were helpless only in the very situation they learned to be helpless about,
& others gave up in brand new situations. Some humans blamed themselves for failing to
escape the noise, & others blamed the experimenter
• Post-traumatic Growth:
• Improved self-perception – see our self as stronger
• Builds interpersonal relationships – able to relate to & appreciate others better
• Improved philosophy of life – encourages new possibilities & spiritual change
• Protective Factors:
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
