Optimism and Depression
Optimism is of special importance in the area of depression. Research tells us that approximately one in five adolescents will suffer from depression by the end of high school and as many as one in eleven children may have an episode of depression by the end of middle school. Depression, itself, is painful. It brings with it feelings of worthlessness, difficulty concentrating, fatigue, irritability, and sadness. To make it worse, children and adolescents who are depressed often begin to have academic difficulties, problems with friends, and they are more likely to abuse alcohol and other drugs. Depression is a serious mental health problem that is affecting today's youth.

Although we don't fully understand all of the causes of depression, research shows that there are successful ways to treat depression and prevent it. Among these successful approaches are programs that teach children and adolescents optimism skills and techniques for increasing their resilience. By teaching school-aged children how to think optimistically and how to approach problems and adversities with a clear set of coping skills, we can enable them to approach their lives with resilience and increase their overall sense of well-being.

Teach Optimism
Optimism matters and it can be learned! As a parent, you can lay the foundation for happiness, resilience and success by teaching your child how to think optimistically.

For some simple strategies to help your child develop an optimistic attitude, check out our Tool Box for:

Sources:
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Garrison, C.Z., Schluchter, M.D., Schoenbach, V.J., & Kaplan, B.K. (1989). Epidemiology of depressive symptoms in young adolescents. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 28, 343 351.

Gillham, J.E., Reivich, K.J., Jaycox, L.H., & Seligman, M.E.P. (1995). Prevention of depressive symptoms in schoolchildren: Two year follow-up. Psychological Science, 6, 343-351.

Lewinsohn, P.M., Hops, H., Roberts, R., & Seeley, J. (1993). Adolescent psychopathology: I. Prevalence and incidence of depression and other DSM-III-R disorders in high school students. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 102, 110-120.

Buchanan, G.M. & Seligman, M.E.P. (1995). Explanatory Style, Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.

Reivich, K.J. & Gillham, J.E. (2003). Learned optimism: The measurement of explanatory style. In S. J. Lopez & C. R. Snyder (Eds.) Positive psychological assessment: Handbook of models and measures. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

Reivich, K., Gillham, J.E., Chaplin, T.M., & Seligman, M.E.P. (2005). From helplessness to optimism: The role of resilience in treating and preventing depression in youth. In S. Goldstein & R.B. Brooks (Eds.), Handbook of resilience in children (pp. 223-237). New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers.

Reivich, K. & Shatte', A. (2002) The Resilience Factor , New York: Broadway Books.

Seligman, M., Reivich, K., Jaycox, L. H., and Gillham, J. (1995) The Optimistic Child, New York: Houghton-Mifflin.