Inventory of Positive Psychology Interventions
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Name of intervention: The Opened Door
Source: Zone Positive*
Tags: optimism, reframing, dealing with adversity
Short Description: Using optimism to deal with adversity
Goal of this intervention:
Hope and optimism are positive emotions about the future. The optimist sees the good in the bad, the silver
lining, and the bright side. These views have become clichéd in their expression, but that does not diminish
the huge effect that optimism has on fighting depression, on higher productivity, and on better health. The
essence of the process is that optimists are more resilient: they try harder when they are defeated. Optimism
does not make a person foolish or naive. Indeed, optimism can be hard work.
Life deals the optimist the same setbacks and tragedies as the pessimist, but it is the optimist who tends to
bounce back and recover from these situations more effectively. The pessimist is more inclined to ruminate,
get depressed and perhaps give up altogether. Why is that? More importantly, can anything be done to help
the pessimist? The first step in learning optimism is to realize that in your own life, every time a door closed,
another door opened.
The skills of optimism can be learned and that is the goal of this exercise. The key is how to frame or reframe
your perceptions using a more encouraging viewpoint when you suffer a personal setback. It is a way of
thinking.
How to conduct this intervention:
Step 1: First, take the Seligman Optimism Test for a baseline measure. Go to:
http://www.authentichappiness.sas.upenn.edu/ . Use your log in and password information to access the test
and the report. See additional comments below for interpretation of results.
Step 2: Give some thought to the doors that have closed and doors that have opened for you. This could be
a lost job opportunity, rejection by a loved one or other significant event.
Step 3: Now, write down answers to the following questions:
The most important door that ever closed on me was______________________________________
The door that opened was___________________________________________________________
A door that closed on me through bad luck or missed opportunity was_________________________
The door that opened was___________________________________________________________
A door that closed on me through loss, rejection, or death was_______________________________
The door that opened was____________________________________________________________
Questions to ponder:
Did the new door open immediately, or did it take a while?
Did your disappointment, sadness, or bitterness (or other negative feelings) resulting from the closed door
influence your ability to find the open door?
Are there things you can do in the future to find the open door more readily?
What have you learned from this exercise? How might you apply next time you are faced with a setback?
Expected outcome (examples)
People have different ways of reacting to adversity such as failure, rejection or a high-pressure situation.
Individuals with high Overall Optimism Scores are more likely to have the following characteristics than those
with low Overall Optimism Scores:
-Are self-motivated, confident, resourceful, assertive and decisive
-Are resilient and are not overwhelmed by adversity
-Rebound quickly following defeats
-Cope well with frequent frustration, rejection and stress
-Persevere in finding solutions to difficult problems
-Are unlikely to be undermined by off-the job problems
-Do not dwell on or punish themselves over failures
-Maintain confidence, determination and enthusiasm following setbacks
-Are energized by success to seek out more challenges and opportunities
-Believe success is achievable
Things to watch out for
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You may argue that supporting optimism means sacrificing realism. Remember to be flexible. We are
not suggesting that absolute, unconditional optimism be applied blindly in all situations. This exercise
simply aims to increase your control over the way you think about adversity.
You may think that learning to be optimistic feels superficial—an attempt to change your personality and
turn yourself into “Miss Goody Two-Shoes”. You may resist. Use the same point as explained in the
bullet above.
Is there any science to support this intervention
Many studies have been done on the various facets of optimism. One study for example looked at optimism
and coping behavior (Carver, Scheier, & Weintraub, 1989). Results showed that optimists tend to be problem
focused and plan-oriented. They tend to accept the reality of stressful events, try to see the best in bad
situations and they try to learn something from them (finding benefits in adversity).
By comparison, pessimists tend to disengage from the goals when the situation becomes stressful. They tend
toward overt denial and reduced awareness of the problem. They tend to avoid acceptance of the situation,
using more emotion-focused coping including escapism (i.e. eating, drinking).
Additional comments:
Interpreting the results of the Optimism Test:
Optimists: People who believe good events have a permanent cause are more optimistic than those who
believe they have temporary causes. If your score is 7 or 8, you are very optimistic about the likelihood of
good events continuing; 6, moderately optimistic; 4 or 5, average; 3, moderately pessimistic; and 0, 1, or 2,
very pessimistic. The optimist believes good events will enhance everything he does, while the pessimist
believes good events are caused by specific factors. If your score is 7 or 8, you are very optimistic; 6,
moderately optimistic; 4 or 5, average; 3, moderately pessimistic; and 0, 1, or 2, very pessimistic
Pessimists: People who give up easily believe the causes of the bad events that happen to them are
permanent—the bad events will persist, are always going to be there to affect their lives. People who resist
helplessness believe the causes of bad events are temporary. If your score is 0-1, you are very optimistic on
this dimension; 2 or 3, moderately optimistic; 4 average, 5 or 6 quite pessimistic; and if you got a 7 or 8 you
are very pessimistic. People who make universal (pessimistic) explanations for their failures give up on
everything when a failure strikes in one area. People who make specific (optimistic) explanations may
become helpless in that one part of their lives, yet march stalwartly on in others. If your score is 0-1, you are
very optimistic on this dimension; 2 or 3, moderately so; 4 average, 5 or 6 quite pessimistic; and if you got a 7
or 8 very pessimistic
Whether or not we have hope depends on the two dimensions of Permanence and Pervasiveness taken
together. Finding permanent and universal causes of good events along with temporary and specific causes
for misfortune is the art of hope finding permanent and universal causes for misfortune and temporary and
specific causes of good events is the practice of despair. If your score is 10 to 16, you are extraordinarily
hopeful; 6 to 9, moderately hopeful; from 1 to 5, average, from minus 5 to 0, moderately hopeless; and below
minus 5, severely hopeless.
Note: Questionnaires like this are not infallible and do not predict the future with certainty, they simply give
statistical probabilities. Only the Overall Optimism Score has been statistically validated for personnel
selection purposes -- for selecting salespeople. All other scores should be used only for personnel training
and development purposes. If the Overall Optimism Score is used for selecting salespeople, it should not be
used as the sole basis for any hiring decision, but is intended for use in conjunction with other valid selection
methods. Research has shown that, on the average, individuals with high optimism will significantly out
produce those with low optimism.
Readings:
Seligman, M. E. P., (2006). Learned Optimism. New York: Random House, Inc.
Seligman, M.E.P. (2002). Authentic Happiness: Using the New Positive Psychology to Realize Your Potential
for Lasting Fulfillment. New York: Free Press.
References:
Carver, C. S., Scheier, M. F., & Weintraub, J. K. (1989). Assessing coping strategies: A theoretically based
approach. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 56, 267-283.
*Adapted from the “What door opened” exercise, Martin E. P. Seligman Ph.D. - University of Pennsylvania
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