Brain 'rejects negative thoughts' (BBC)

[eppur_se_muova]

By James Gallagher
Health reporter, BBC News

One reason optimists retain a positive outlook even in the face of evidence to the contrary has been discovered, say researchers.

A study, published in Nature Neuroscience, suggests the brain is very good at processing good news about the future.

However, in some people, anything negative is practically ignored - with them retaining a positive world view.

The authors said optimism did have important health benefits.

Scientists at University College London said about 80% of people were optimists, even if they would not label themselves as such.
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more: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-15214080




So now we have a scientific rationalization for denial? GW is bad news for the status quo, so don't believe it? Exposing Wall Street as a sham would be bad for business, so don't face the facts? A "positive world view" may make the individual feel better, but maintaining an attitude of blissful ignorance in the face of real dangers may not make for a long-term survival strategy -- not to mention that denialists bring great harm to others than themselves. Good for the individual, bad for the species.

[Odin2005]

1. This is exactly why the "THINK POSITIVE" self-help crap is so dangerous.

It turns people into a bunch of Dr. Panglosses.

[xchrom]

2. Good find. Nt

[hunter]

3. People think I'm a pessimist...

... I think I'm a realist.

I can process both good and bad news about the future.

:evilgrin: :woohoo: :evilfrown:

[FarCenter]

4. This morning one of the shows had a clip of Gen Allen asserting that we will win in Afghanistan

You probably don't get promoted to General unless you are an incurable optimist.

You can't lead a military organization (or a sports team) without faking optimisim, even when you aren't.

No one should place any credence in an assessment by a military officer, or take their views as anything but unconciously or deliberately skewed towards optimism.

[eppur_se_muova]

10. ""The secret of acting is sincerity. If you can fake that, you've got it made.""

"The secret of acting is sincerity. If you can fake that, you've got it made."
-- George Burns

Politicians, generals, motivational speakers, and coaches are all, basically, actors.

[Jim__]

5. They rated 14 people for their level of optimism and tested them in a brain scanner.

They rated 14 people for their level of optimism and tested them in a brain scanner.

...

Dr Tali Sharot, lead researcher, gave the example of the risk of cancer being set at 30%.

If the patient thought their risk was 40%, then at the end of the experiment they downgraded their own risk to about 31%, she said.

However, if the patient originally thought their risk was 10%, they only marginally increased their risk - they "leaned a little bit, but not a lot".

What does: they only marginally increased their risk mean? And how does it compare to the change in people who decreased their risk. Also, what is the significance of this test given that only 14 people were tested.

[Shandris]

6. It means the sample size is too small to draw...

...-any- conclusions from.

That said, this really is old news -- it goes in the same vein as recognizing that even bad publicity is still publicity. Or retractions that feature negative words simply aren't processed by the brain as easily (often the connection is still drawn, minus the word 'not').

I have long told my best friend (who is a world-class pessimist of the worst variety) that pessimism yields a self-fulfilling prophecy more often than not, and that optimism DOES have more power than people recognize. He doesn't quite buy into it of course (one has a lot of trouble simply 'becoming' an optimist, or a pessimist, or any shade in-between), but there are some times when he can see the power of optimism in action.

[struggle4progress]

7. My brain wouldn't do that to me!

:D

[surrealAmerican]

8. You can't see something too troubling ...

from Hitchhikers' Guide to the Galaxy: "An SEP is something we can't see, or don't see, or our brain doesn't let us see, because we think that it's somebody else's problem.... The brain just edits it out, it's like a blind spot. If you look at it directly you won't see it unless you know precisely what it is. Your only hope is to catch it by surprise out of the corner of your eye."

[lunatica]

9. Well that explains DU to a tee

See. We're not so weird.

[Gregorian]

11. I would be an optimist, except reality keeps beating me into a pessimist.

I see a beautiful world full of great people, in my mind.

[azul]

12. On the path of beauty,

the opposite of what is perceived as beautiful is naturally shunned. Life is programmed somehow to breed for beauty and health. It is damaging to the health of the body, and perhaps spirit, to pursue negativity, what is considered bad thoughts and actions.

However, beauty is ultimately in the mind of the beholder. We have some mental control of our immune systems, and thus health.