The Hopeful, Whole Self

A Rational Guide to Being Hopeful

“Youth is easily deceived because it is quick to hope,” quotes Greek philosopher Aristotle. A few centuries later, another philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, would write, “Hope in reality is the worst of all evils because it prolongs the torments of man.” Author JRR Tolkien, in his fantasy novel The Children of Húrin, warned that “false hopes are more dangerous than fears.” Unless you’re a cynic, you might be forgiven for thinking that no small number of classical and contemporary writers and scholars held a dim view of hope. And you would be right in saying that there have been too, philosophers who have considered hope to be a virtue rather than a vice. Danish philosopher Soren Kierkegaard quotes that “hope is passion for what is possible,” while author Alexandre Dumas claims that “all human wisdom is summed up into two words; wait and hope.” Which view wins out, where scientific evidence is concerned? The happily hopeful, or the cautiously cynical?

Hope has been the subject of numerous psychological studies within the past three decades. It is important to note that hope is not simply ‘wishful thinking.’ Rather, researchers define hope as being a ‘cognitive set’ that promotes goal-directed thinking. Hopeful individuals are those who can find ways to reach their goals and are motivated to use those ways to reach those goals. The most widely-supported model of hope thus, comprises the ‘wills’ and the ‘ways.’ You might have heard of the saying, “where there’s a will, there’s a way.” Authentic hope, as shown in this model, suggests that both the wills and the ways must exist in tandem – both can lead to positive psychological outcomes [1]. It also helps to distinguish here, that being hopeful goes beyond being (merely) optimistic. Optimists expect positive outcomes – but it is the hopeful person that knows how to attain those positive outcomes.

Much of the evidence accumulated over the past three decades from hope research shows that hopeful individuals are more likely to benefit from higher levels of psychological and physical well-being. Hopeful individuals report lower levels of depression and stress, and greater overall happiness, in one meta-analysis of 98 studies on hope [2]. And, contrary to Nietzsche’s critical view of hope, one other meta-analysis indicates that being hopeful helps promote effective physical functioning. This study, from the Annals of Behavioral Medicine, showed that both hope and optimism had negative relationships with pain severity and psychological dysfunction [3]. Hope and optimism, are, of course, distinct constructs – but both are crucial in promoting well-being. But it is important to reiterate – that where genuine hope, is concerned, that the will to reach one’s goals is balanced with and must be accompanied by knowing the ways to those goals. A rational approach to hope then, is neither being blindly hopeful nor ceaselessly cynical of one reaching their goals.

Drawing on Others for Hope

How does one become hopeful? Where do individuals draw their source of hope from? You might be hopeful because of your innate capabilities, strengths, and talents. Or, you could be hopeful because you perceive yourself as being surrounded by those who support your goal efforts. For this reason, psychologists have extended hope to assess an individual difference called ‘locus of hope.’ The pathways in which you use to attain your goals can be helped by your family, your peers, or your spiritual life. This work, by psychologist Allan Bernardo, proposes that when we distinguish internal or external pathways to hope, a clearer picture emerges on how individuals become more hopeful and where they draw their goal-attainment cognitions from [4]. Importantly, such distinctions may be more important in collectivist contexts, in which goal-attainment thoughts and efforts are motivated by the pathways offered by our close and meaningful personal relationships [5].

Recent studies examining locus of hope does give credence to the idea that our goal pursuits can be helped on by others – perhaps more so than if we relied on our plans and volitions. In a study of Chinese students, researchers found that a more external (other-oriented) locus of hope contributed to higher levels of perceived family support, which then led to higher levels of life satisfaction [6]. Having an external locus of hope has also been shown to promote collectivist coping. While individuals in collectivist cultures can accept and reframe their challenges, the effectiveness of coping and eventual life satisfaction too was found to be shaped by how much hope they drew from their family’s support [7]. Put another way, when faced with challenges and difficulties, those from collectivist cultures drew not just from their innate, personal resources – but also from relational ones, to attain desired outcomes. This ultimately benefited them and enhanced their overall life satisfaction.

An external locus of hope can also serve as a crucial buffer against negative emotional experiences. Another study showed that an external locus of hope can help buffer against the experiences of discrimination. Employing a sample of Filipino students, this study showed that when individuals had a strong external locus of hope centred around their peers, they were less likely to experience the negative effects of discrimination on their well-being [8]. Results from this study suggest that in addition to promoting life satisfaction, one’s external locus of hope protects against discrimination that would otherwise diminish well-being.

No One Hopes Alone

Where do you draw your hope from? Part of your hopefulness will no doubt, be based on perceptions of your abilities, past experiences, ingenuity when you’re confronted with difficulties and challenges. But hope is too, drawn from your closest, most meaningful relationships – from your family, your peers, and your spirituality. So often, we neglect to see – even acknowledge, how we might progress on our goals by drawing on others. No man or woman accomplishes goals on their own. By the same measure, and from what we know about our external locus of hope, no one needs to find their way out of their challenges and difficulties alone either.

Reference:

[1] Snyder, C. R. (2002). Hope theory: Rainbows in the mind. Psychological Inquiry, 13(4), 249-275.

[2] Alarcon, G. M., Bowling, N. A., & Khazon, S. (2013). Great expectations: A meta-analytic examination of optimism and hope. Personality and Individual Differences, 54(7), 821-827.

[3] Shanahan, M. L., Fischer, I. C., Hirsh, A. T., Stewart, J. C., & Rand, K. L. (2021). Hope, Optimism, and Clinical Pain: A Meta-Analysis. Annals of Behavioral Medicine. kaab001, https://doi.org/10.1093/abm/kaab001

[4] Bernardo, A. B. (2010). Extending hope theory: Internal and external locus of trait hope. Personality and Individual Differences, 49(8), 944-949.

[5] Bernardo, A. B., Yeung, S. S., Resurreccion, K. F., Resurreccion, R. R., & Khan, A. (2018). External locus‐of‐hope, well‐being, and coping of students: A cross‐cultural examination within Asia. Psychology in the Schools, 55(8), 908-923.

[6] Du, H., Bernardo, A. B., & Yeung, S. S. (2015). Locus-of-hope and life satisfaction: The mediating roles of personal self-esteem and relational self-esteem. Personality and Individual Differences, 83, 228-233.

[7] Bernardo, A. B., Wang, T. Y., Pesigan, I. J. A., & Yeung, S. S. (2017). Pathways from collectivist coping to life satisfaction among Chinese: The roles of locus-of-hope. Personality and Individual Differences, 106, 253-256.

[8] Datu, J. A. D., & Jose Mateo, N. (2017). How to combat the negative impact of discrimination in a collectivist context? The safeguarding function of peer-oriented hope. Psychology, Health & Medicine, 22(3), 345-351.

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