The Science of Hope | Jacqueline Mattis

About this episode

<p><em>New episodes come out every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for free, with 1-week early access for Wondery+ subscribers.</em></p> <p><em>---</em></p> <p>How does hope work? </p> <p><br /></p> <p>In this episode from the archives, Rutgers University clinical psychologist <a href= "https://sasn.rutgers.edu/about-us/faculty-staff/jacqueline-s-mattis" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Dr. Jacqueline Mattis</a> discusses hope from a scientific perspective and how we can cultivate it. </p> <p><br /></p> <p>Dr. Mattis, who is also a Dean of faculty at Rutgers, did not start her career wanting to study hope. She started out studying spirituality and religiosity, specifically concentrating her field work and interviews in African-American and Afri-Caribbean urban communities. She wanted to know why people living under high stress conditions so often choose to be good and compassionate. And that research ultimately led her to hope.</p> <p><br /></p> <p><br /></p> <p><br /></p> <p>In this episode we talk about: </p> <p><br /></p> <ul> <li>How her family history influenced her relationship to optimism and faith </li> <li>The difference between spirituality and religiosity </li> <li>The benefits of hope and skills to cultivate it</li> <li>The ways hope can go wrong</li> <li>And the benefits of denial</li> </ul> <p><br /></p> <p><br /></p> <p><br /></p> <p><strong>Full Shownotes:</strong> <a href= "https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/jacqueline-mattis-340-repost" rel="noopener noreferrer" target= "_blank">https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/jacqueline-mattis-340-repost</a></p>