Optimism Research Project

Introduction

The article “Girlfriends are Key to Women’s Optimism” from Women’s Voices for Change examines how female friendship circles help promote optimism among women. The article discusses research that was conducted on both men and women between the ages of 45 and 55 years, and the results were that women were more optimistic about their future than men (Sheehy,2011). This was attributed to women’s friendship circles where they create a strong network, share their problems, learn, and console one another.

Optimism among women is cultivated by the friendship groups where women are seen to express themselves among their friends when they meet. This action is uncommon among men who don’t express their feelings and problems to their fellow men and friends (Sheehy,2011). Women’s optimism is also cultivated by their friendship being supportive, and they usually hold their fellow women back when facing a problem.

The second article, “Optimism and Its Impact on Mental and Physical Well-Being,” examines the advantages of optimism on mental and physical health, healthy lifestyle, and stress and risk management. Optimism, as discussed in this article by different authors, is seen to promote a better life through a positive mentality and a better way of handling different challenges in life, which in turn results in an individual’s well-being both physically and mentally (Rasmussen et al., 2009). The article also highlights how optimism leads to lower mortality rates and heart problems as compared to pessimism, which is associated with premature deaths of patients when undergoing diagnosis of various diseases like cancer or AIDS.

As highlighted by the article, optimism is a very important aspect that needs to be integrated into society to help reduce problems related to pessimistic behaviours, such as reduced immune system for the sick and vulnerability to depression. Optimism can be promoted to society through physiotherapy sessions so that individuals may change their perceptions of various aspects of life. Individuals also need to be encouraged to set achievable goals to avoid fueling disappointment in the future.

The two articles highlight the importance of optimism in facilitating strong and healthy mental and physical health. Friendship, as explained by the women’s friendship circles, is attributed to promoting optimism among women, which enables women to live longer lives since they can share their problems with their peers and get help instead of sinking into depression. The two articles highlight the need to promote optimism in society to both men and women for physical and mental wellness. Men characterized by not sharing problems should also look and form social networks with their fellow men and their families and create a space to share their problems, support each other as women do and seek physiotherapy services when needed.

Data collection

Demographics

The demographic information used in this research included age and gender. The gender used was male and female. The age bracket used for the research was under 21, 21-30, and 31-40 for both males and females. Age is a very important demographic variable to consider as it impacts the levels of optimism as different age groups have different perspectives on various issues. For instance, young people may be seen to be more optimistic due to the numerous opportunities and ambitions they have for their future. Older people may seem less optimistic than young people due to their exposure to both negative and positive experiences, which enables them to have a more realistic view of the world due to their greater life experience and exposure to negative events.

Materials

We used a questionnaire administered through Google Forms to collect information on optimism. The questionnaire comprised age bracket, gender, and a multiple-choice grid with a Likert scale. The first question asked of the participants was to indicate their age bracket to determine the potential differences in optimism levels across different age brackets. The second question that followed was for the participants to indicate their gender. This information was to help determine potential gender differences in the experience and expression of optimism.

The third question was the multiple-choice grid with a Likert scale. The grid consisted of several items used to assess the participants’ level of optimism. Here, the participants were supposed to rate their level of agreement with each statement on a scale ranging from 1 to 5, where one indicated “strongly disagree,” two indicated “somewhat disagree”, three indicated “neither agree nor disagree”, four was “somewhat agree” and five indicated “strongly agree.”

The questionnaire had 29 responses, with 14 responses from male participants and 15 from female participants. Google Forms, as our data collection tool, was a very efficient means to collect the information as it was cheap, easy to administer, enabled collection of data from a wide range of participants in a short time, helped in organizing data collected as it was systematic. It analyzed the data quickly giving a comprehensive analysis and report.

Procedure 

We collected data by inviting our friends and random members of the society who willingly agreed to participate in our research. The data collection process assured the anonymity of our participants and ensured independence when filling in the Google forms.

Results

Frequency polygon

The 14 male responses about their optimism were collected from various age brackets, which included nine responses from those under 21 and 5 in the 21-31 age bracket.

The 15 female responses about their optimism were collected from various age brackets, which included five responses from those under 21 and 10 in the 21-31 age bracket.

Male responses

Female responses

Findings

Descriptive Statistics Analysis

Male

The data is left skewed for the males as the mean is less than the median and mode.

Based on the actual skewness, the data is symmetric or normally distributed. This indicated that the scores were normally distributed.

Female

The data is normally distributed for females as mean, mode, and median are equal.

Based on actual skewness, the data is normally distributed. This indicated that the scores were normally distributed.

Hypothesis testing (T-test)

Null hypothesis (H0): There is no significant difference between male and female respondents’ levels of optimism.

Alternative hypothesis (H1): There is a significant difference between male and female respondents’ levels of optimism.

T-test = 0.090779637

(T value at p =0.05 ) = 1.96

P value > T-test, therefore, fails to reject null and concludes that at a 5% level of significance, there is no significant difference between male and female respondents’ levels of optimism. This shows that gender doesn’t affect the level of optimism.

Conclusion

From the research conducted on optimism between males and females, it can be seen that gender does not affect the level of optimism; hence, other considerations should be included in the study. Factors like age, which affects the level of optimism among different age groups, should be studied to determine the relationship that exists between the two factors. Further studies on other factors like the level of optimism on sick and those not sick, smokers and non-smokers should also be carried out to develop a comprehensive report on boosting optimism levels in society.

Optimism is a very important aspect of society as it impacts people’s physical and mental health (Conversano et al., 2010). Optimistic people are characterized by developments and economic growth, among other positive results. Thus, people should be encouraged to seek physiotherapy sessions when they feel distressed or seek help from their peers to be able to overcome their pessimistic attitude.

References

Conversano, C., Rotondo, A., Lensi, E., Della Vista, O., Arpone, F., & Reda, M. A. (2010). Optimism and its impact on mental and physical well-being. Clinical practice and epidemiology in mental health: CP & EMH, 6, 25.

Rasmussen, H. N., Scheier, M. F., & Greenhouse, J. B. (2009). Optimism and physical health: A meta-analytic review. Annals of Behavioral Medicine, 37(3), 239-256.

Sheehy, G. (2011, October 5). GIRLFRIENDS ARE KEY TO WOMEN’S OPTIMISM. Women’s Voices for Change. https://womensvoicesforchange.org/girlfriends-are-key-to-womens-optimism.htm