Author Question: According to Seligman, learned helplessness during infancy and early childhood can predispose us to ... (Read 318 times)

appyboo · **on:** Jun 21, 2018

According to Seligman, learned helplessness during infancy and early childhood can predispose us to a(n):

a. secondary-process thought.
c. primary-process thought.
b. internal locus of control.
d. pessimistic explanatory style.

Question 2

People who have a more _____ explanatory style recover more quickly from failure or negative life pressures.

a. optimistic
c. depressed
b. exciting
d. pessimistic

jazzlynnnnn · **Reply #1 on:** Jun 21, 2018

Answer to Question 1

ANS: D
FEEDBACK: Although learned helplessness can occur throughout life, Seligman suggested that we are particularly vulnerable to developing those feelings in infancy and early childhood. During these formative years the experience of learned helplessness can predispose us to the pessimistic explanatory style (Seligman, 1975).

Answer to Question 2

ANS: A
FEEDBACK: According to Seligman, the important difference between people who recover from temporary depression and those who do not is their explanatory style. A pessimistic explanatory style changes learned helplessness from brief and local to long-lasting and general, he wrote. In optimists, a failure produces only brief demoralization.