| Title |
Optimists or Optimistic? A Taxometric Study of Optimism
|
|---|---|
| Published in |
Psychological Assessment, September 2014
|
| DOI | 10.1037/pas0000010 |
| Pubmed ID | |
| Authors |
Katherine V. Eichner, Paul Kwon, David K. Marcus |
| Abstract |
Although most researchers have assumed that optimism exists on a continuum, it is not uncommon for researchers to dichotomize their data into optimists and pessimists, thus treating optimism as a categorical or taxonic variable. To address the question of whether optimism is dimensional or taxonic, the authors performed a set of taxometric analyses on 3 indicators derived from measures of hope and optimism using data from 510 college students. The results provided consistent evidence that optimism is dimensional. Colloquially, people may speak of optimists and pessimists, but researchers should avoid dichotomizing this continuous variable. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2014 APA, all rights reserved). |
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X Demographics
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Singapore | 1 | 50% |
| United States | 1 | 50% |
Demographic breakdown
| Type | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Scientists | 2 | 100% |
Mendeley demographics
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| United States | 1 | 3% |
| Spain | 1 | 3% |
| Brazil | 1 | 3% |
| Unknown | 26 | 90% |
Demographic breakdown
| Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Student > Ph. D. Student | 7 | 24% |
| Student > Bachelor | 5 | 17% |
| Student > Master | 4 | 14% |
| Student > Doctoral Student | 2 | 7% |
| Researcher | 2 | 7% |
| Other | 3 | 10% |
| Unknown | 6 | 21% |
| Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Psychology | 18 | 62% |
| Business, Management and Accounting | 2 | 7% |
| Arts and Humanities | 1 | 3% |
| Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology | 1 | 3% |
| Unknown | 7 | 24% |