Extreme Optimism
Parents are frequently optimistic about their children, believing their children to be better and more likely to have a positive future than other children (Lench, Quas, & Edelstein, 2006). Although optimism frequently has positive effects, allowing people to stay engaged with goals and maintain health (Taylor & Brown, 1988), it can also lead to negative outcomes. Specifically, when optimists are confronted with unexpected negative events they are less likely to be prepared to deal with the event and may experience more intense negative emotions as a result (Colvin & Block, 1994). However, little is known about the potential positive or negative consequences of parental optimism. In the case of parents, extreme optimism for their children may lead to disappointment in their children when they fail to live up to expectations and extreme frustration with systems (schools, programs, etc) that demand better performance than their child can give. This study will examine three groups of parents: 1) parents of children who maintain extremely optimistic beliefs regarding their children who qualify for ADD/ADHD diagnosis. These parents believe their children are spiritually gifted and that any symptoms are the result of the failure of the larger system to understand their children. 2) parents of children who are diagnosed with and treated for ADD/ADHD. These parents are not as optimistic for their children and recognize the potential difficulties that their children may have interacting with others. 3) parents of children who are not diagnosed with ADD/ADHD and do not have ADD/ADHD symptoms. This will allow us to explore the types of beliefs these parents hold regarding their children and the experiences of these parents as they interact with their children.
