Can psychological interventions increase optimism? A meta-analysis

References

• Studies marked with an asterisk were included in the meta-analysis.
   Google Scholar
• *Antoni, M. H., Lehman, J. M., Kilbourn, K. M., Boyers, A. E., Culver, J. L., Alferi, S. M., … Carver, C. S. (2001). Cognitive-behavioral stress management intervention decreases the prevalence of depression and enhances benefit finding among women under treatment for early-stage breast cancer. Health Psychology, 20, 20–32.10.1037/0278-6133.20.1.20
   Google Scholar
• Atienza, A. A., Stephens, M. A. P., & Townsend, A. L. (2004). Role stressors as predictors of changes in womens’ optimistic expectations. Personality and Individual Differences, 37, 471–484.10.1016/j.paid.2003.09.016
   Google Scholar
• Baghkheirati, A. J., Ghahremani, L., Kaveh, M. H., & Keshavarzi, S. (2015). The effect of educational intervention based on the theory of planned behavior on degree of optimism among male high school students. Journal of Health Sciences and Surveillance System, 3, 27–35.
   Google Scholar
• Betz, N. E., & Schifano, R. S. (2000). Evaluation of an intervention to increase realistic self-efficacy and interests in college women. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 56, 35–52.10.1006/jvbe.1999.1690
   Google Scholar
• Blackwell, S. E., Browning, M., Mathews, A., Pictet, A., Welch, J., Davies, J., … Holmes, E. A. (2015). Positive imagery-based cognitive bias modification as a web-based treatment tool for depressed adults: A randomized controlled trial. Clinical Psychological Science, 3, 91–111.10.1177/2167702614560746
   Google Scholar
• Borenstein, M., Hedges, L. V., Higgins, J. P. T., & Rothstein, H. R. (2006). Comprehensive meta-analysis version 2. Englewood, NJ: Biostat.
   Google Scholar
• *Boselie, J. J., Vancleef, L. M., Smeets, T., & Peters, M. L. (2014). Increasing optimism abolishes pain-induced impairments in executive task performance. Pain, 155, 334–340.10.1016/j.pain.2013.10.014
   Google Scholar
• Boselie, J. L. M., Vancleef, L. M. G., & Peters, M. L. (in press). The effects of experimental pain and induced optimism on working memory task performance. Scandinavian Journal of Pain.
   Google Scholar
• Boselie, J. L. M., Vancleef, L. M. G., & Peters, M. L. (2016). Increasing optimism protects against pain-induced impairments in task shifting performance. Manuscript under review by a journal.
   Google Scholar
• *Breitbart, W., Rosenfeld, B., Gibson, C., Pessin, H., Poppito, S., Nelson, C., … Olden, M. (2010). Meaning-centered group psychotherapy for patients with advanced cancer: A pilot randomized controlled trial. Psycho-Oncology, 19, 21–28. doi:10.1002/pon.1556
   Google Scholar
• Brummett, B. H., Helms, M. J., Dahlstrom, W. G., & Siegler, I. C. (2006). Prediction of all-cause mortality by the minnesota multiphasic personality inventory optimism-pessimism scale scores: Study of a college sample during a 40-year follow-up period. Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 81, 1541–1544.10.4065/81.12.1541
   Google Scholar
• Bryant, F. B., & Cvengros, J. A. (2004). Distinguishing hope and optimism: Two sides of a coin, or two separate coins? Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 23, 273–302.10.1521/jscp.23.2.273.31018
   Google Scholar
• Carver, C. S., & Scheier, M. F. (2014). Dispositional optimism. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 18, 293–299.10.1016/j.tics.2014.02.003
   Google Scholar
• Carver, C. S., Scheier, M. F., & Segerstrom, S. C. (2010). Optimism. Clinical Psychology Review, 30, 879–889.10.1016/j.cpr.2010.01.006
   Google Scholar
• *Chesney, M. A., Chambers, D. B., Taylor, J. M., Johnson, L. M., & Folkman, S. (2003). Coping effectiveness training for men living with HIV: Results from a randomized clinical trial testing a group-based intervention. Psychosomatic Medicine, 65, 1038–1046. doi:10.1097/01.PSY.0000097344.78697.ED
   Google Scholar
• Christensen, H., Batterham, P., & Calear, A. (2014). Online interventions for anxiety disorders. Current Opinion in Psychiatry, 27, 7–13.10.1097/YCO.0000000000000019
   Google Scholar
• Ciarrocchi, J. W., & Deneke, E. (2005). Hope, optimism, pessimism, and spirituality as predictors of well-being controlling for personality. Research in the Social Scientific Study of Religion, 16, 161–183.
   Google Scholar
• Cohen, J. (1988). Statistical power for the social sciences (2nd ed.). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
   Google Scholar
• *Drozd, F., Mork, L., Nielsen, B., Raeder, S., & Bjørkli, C. A. (2014). Better Days – A randomized controlled trial of an internet-based positive psychology intervention. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 9, 377–388. doi:10.1080/17439760.2014.910822
   Google Scholar
• *Fosnaugh, J., Geers, A. L., & Wellman, J. A. (2009). Giving off a rosy glow: The manipulation of an optimistic orientation. Journal of Social Psychology, 149, 349–364.10.3200/SOCP.149.3.349-364
   Google Scholar
• Fresco, D. M., Moore, M. T., Walt, L., & Craighead, L. W. (2009). Self-administered optimism training: Mechanisms of change in a minimally supervised psychoeducational intervention. Journal of Cognitive Psychotherapy, 23, 350–367.10.1891/0889-8391.23.4.350
   Google Scholar
• Galatzer-Levy, I. R., & Bonanno, G. A. (2014). Optimism and death predicting the course and consequences of depression trajectories in response to heart attack. Psychological Science. Retrieved from http://pss.sagepub.com/content/25/12/2177
   Google Scholar
• *Hanssen, M. M., Peters, M. L., Vlaeyen, J. W., Meevissen, Y. M., & Vancleef, L. M. (2013). Optimism lowers pain: Evidence of the causal status and underlying mechanisms. Pain, 154, 53–58.10.1016/j.pain.2012.08.006
   Google Scholar
• *Kjellgren, A., & Westman, J. (2014). Beneficial effects of treatment with sensory isolation in flotation-tank as a preventive health-care intervention-a randomized controlled pilot trial. BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 14, 417. doi:10.1186/1472-6882-14-417
   Google Scholar
• Kjellgren, A., Erdefelt, K., Werngren, L. & Norlander, T. (2011). Does relaxation on a bed of nails (spike mat) induce beneficial effects? A randomized controlled pilot study. Alternative Medicine Studies, 1. doi:10.4081/ams.2011.e5
   Google Scholar
• Kluemper, D. H., Little, L. M., & DeGroot, T. (2009). State or trait: Effects of state optimism on job-related outcomes. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 30, 209–231.10.1002/job.v30:2
   Google Scholar
• *Knaevelsrud, C., Liedl, A., & Maercker, A. (2010). Posttraumatic growth, optimism and openness as outcomes of a cognitive-behavioural intervention for posttraumatic stress reactions. Journal of Health Psychology, 15, 1030–1038.10.1177/1359105309360073
   Google Scholar
• *Koenig, H. G., Pearce, M. J., Nelson, B., & Daher, N. (2015). Effects of religious versus standard cognitive-behavioral therapy for optimism in persons with major depression and chronic medical illness. Depression and Anxiety, 32, 835–842.10.1002/da.2015.32.issue-11
   Google Scholar
• Layous, K., Nelson, S. K., & Lyubomirsky, S. (2013). What is the optimal way to deliver a positive activity intervention? The case of writing about one’s best possible selves. Journal of Happiness Studies, 14, 635–654.10.1007/s10902-012-9346-2
   Google Scholar
• *Lee, V., Cohen, S. R., Edgar, L., Laizner, A. M., & Gagnon, A. J. (2006). Meaning-making intervention during breast or colorectal cancer treatment improves self-esteem, optimism, and self-efficacy. Social Science & Medicine, 62, 3133–3145.10.1016/j.socscimed.2005.11.041
   Google Scholar
• *Lengacher, C. A., Johnson-Mallard, V., Post-White, J., Moscoso, M. S., Jacobsen, P. B., Klein, T. W., … Kip, K. E. (2009). Randomized controlled trial of mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) for survivors of breast cancer. Psycho-Oncology, 18, 1261–1272.10.1002/pon.v18:12
   Google Scholar
• *Littman-Ovadia, H., & Nir, D. (2014). Looking forward to tomorrow: The buffering effect of a daily optimism intervention. Journal of Positive Psychology, 9, 122–136.10.1080/17439760.2013.853202
   Google Scholar
• *Meevissen, Y. M., Peters, M. L., & Alberts, H. J. (2011). Become more optimistic by imagining a best possible self: Effects of a two week intervention. Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry, 42, 371–378.10.1016/j.jbtep.2011.02.012
   Google Scholar
• Moher, D., Liberati, A., Tetzlaff, J., Altman, D. G., & The PRISMA Group. (2009). Preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses: The PRISMA statement. PLoS Medicine, 6, e1000097. doi:10.1371/journal.pmed1000097
   Google Scholar
• *Peters, M. L., Flink, I. K., Boersma, K., & Linton, S. J. (2010). Manipulating optimism: Can imagining a best possible self be used to increase positive future expectancies? The Journal of Positive Psychology, 5, 204–211.10.1080/17439761003790963
   Google Scholar
• *Peters, M. L., Meevissen, Y. M., & Hanssen, M. M. (2013). Specificity of the best possible self intervention for increasing optimism: Comparison with a gratitude intervention. Terapia Psicologica, 31, 93–100.10.4067/S0718-48082013000100009
   Google Scholar
• *Peters, M. L., Vieler, J. S., & Lautenbacher, S. (2015). Dispositional and induced optimism lead to attentional preference for faces displaying positive emotions: An eye-tracker study. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 11, 1–12.
   Google Scholar
• *Pietrowsky, R., & Mikutta, J. (2012). Effects of positive psychology interventions in depressive patients – A randomized control study. Psychology, 3, 1067–1073.10.4236/psych.2012.312158
   Google Scholar
• Prati, G., & Pietrantoni, L. (2009). Optimism, social support, and coping strategies as factors contributing to posttraumatic growth: A meta-analysis. Journal of Loss and Trauma, 14, 364–388.10.1080/15325020902724271
   Google Scholar
• Rand, K. L. (2009). Hope and optimism: Latent structures and influences on grade expectancy and academic performance. Journal of Personality, 77, 231–260.10.1111/jopy.2009.77.issue-1
   Google Scholar
• Rasmussen, H. N., Scheier, M. F., & Greenhouse, J. B. (2009). Optimism and physical health: A meta-analytic review. Annals of Behavioral Medicine, 37, 239–256.10.1007/s12160-009-9111-x
   Google Scholar
• Renner, F., Schwarz, P., Peters, M. L., & Huibers, M. J. (2014). Effects of a best-possible-self mental imagery exercise on mood and dysfunctional attitudes. Psychiatry Research, 215, 105–110.10.1016/j.psychres.2013.10.033
   Google Scholar
• *Rizzato, M. (2014). A brief online loving-kindness meditation intervention; effects on optimism and affect. Dublin: Dublin Business School. Unpublished manuscript.
   Google Scholar
• Scheier, M. F., Carver, C. S., & Bridges, M. W. (1994). Distinguishing optimism from neuroticism (and trait anxiety, self-mastery, and self-esteem): A re-evaluation of the life orientation test. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 67, 1063–1078.10.1037/0022-3514.67.6.1063
   Google Scholar
• *Schonert-Reichl, K. A., Oberle, E., Lawlor, M. S., Abbott, D., Thomson, K., Oberlander, T. F., & Diamond, A. (2015). Enhancing cognitive and social–emotional development through a simple-to-administer mindfulness-based school program for elementary school children: A randomized controlled trial. Developmental Psychology, 51, 52–66. doi:10.1037/a0038454
   Google Scholar
• Segerstrom, S. C. (2007). Optimism and resources: Effects on each other and on health over 10 years. Journal of Research in Personality, 41, 772–786.10.1016/j.jrp.2006.09.004
   Google Scholar
• Seligman, M. E., & Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2000). Positive psychology: An introduction. American Psychologist, 55, 5–14.10.1037/0003-066X.55.1.5
   Google Scholar
• Sergeant, S., & Mongrain, M. (2014). An online optimism intervention reduces depression in pessimistic individuals. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 82, 263–274.10.1037/a0035536
   Google Scholar
• *Shoshani, A., Mifano, K., & Czamanski-Cohen, J. (2015). The effects of the make a wish intervention on psychiatric symptoms and health-related quality of life of children with cancer: A randomised controlled trial. Quality of Life Research, 25, 1–10. doi:10.1007/s11136-015-1148-7
   Google Scholar
• *Smeets, E., Neff, K., Alberts, H., & Peters, M. (2014). Meeting suffering with kindness: Effects of a brief self-compassion intervention for female college students. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 70, 794–807.10.1002/jclp.22076
   Google Scholar
• *Tak, Y. R., Kleinjan, M., Lichtwarck-Aschoff, A., & Engels, R. C. (2014). Secondary outcomes of a school-based universal resiliency training for adolescents: A cluster randomized controlled trial. BMC Public Health, 14, 1171. doi:10.1186/1471-2458-14-1171
   Google Scholar
• *Tavakoly, F. M., Namdari, K., & Esmaili, M. (2014). Effect of psychodrama-based group training for healthy lifestyle on psychological balance, spiritual well-being and optimism. Journal of Life Science and Biomedicine, 4, 346–351.
   Google Scholar
• *Wagner, B., Knaevelsrud, C., & Maercker, A. (2007). Post‐traumatic growth and optimism as outcomes of an internet‐based intervention for complicated grief. Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, 36, 156–161.10.1080/16506070701339713
   Google Scholar
• Watson, D., Clark, L. A., & Tellegen, A. (1988). Development and validation of brief measures of positive and negative affect: The PANAS scales. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 54, 1063–1070.10.1037/0022-3514.54.6.1063
   Google Scholar