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Subject PSYCHOLOGY

Paper No and Title Paper no.9: Positive Psychology

Module No and Title Module no.15: Hope

Module Tag PSY_P9_M15

TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. Learning Outcomes
2. Introduction
3. Hope theory
4. Related constructs
4.1 Optimism
4.2 Self efficacy
5. Development of hope
6. Neurobiology of hope
7. Importance of hope
8. Enhancing hope
9. Collective hope
10. Summary

PSYCHOLOGY PAPER No.9 : POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY

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1. Learning Outcomes
After studying this module, you shall be able to

 Know more about the concept of hope

 Learn about the importance of hope in various domains and
 Understand how hope can be enhanced.

2. Introduction
Studies on hope in the 1950s and 1960s focused on the perception that one’s goals can be attained
and the thinking about goal directed activities and their important role in goal attainment.

Usually, hope is considered to be an affective phenomenon. In contrast, Snyder and others (1991)
reconceptualized hope as a process through which individuals actively pursue their goals.

According to Snyder et al. (1991) hope is a human strength manifested in our perceived capacities
to clearly conceptualize goals (goals thinking), develop strategies to reach those goals (pathways
thinking), and initiate and sustain the motivation for using those strategies (agency thinking).

Hope is conceptualized as a dynamic cognitive motivational system. According to this

conceptualization, emotions follow cognitions and not the other way round. Hope leads to pursuit
of learning goals and learning goals are positively related to success.

In contrast to the understanding of hope as a motivational set, there is also the concept of state
hope. Both these concepts are useful depending on what one is focusing upon. Dispositional hope
applies across situations, while state hope that reflects particular times and events.

3. Hope theory
Hope theory has the following major components: goals, pathway thoughts, agency thoughts and
barriers.

3.1 Goals
Goals are the targets of mental action sequences and are the cognitive component in hope theory.
Goals provide direction for hopeful thinking.

3.2 Pathways Thinking

Pathway thoughts refer to the routes we take to achieve our goals and the perceived ability to
produce these routes.

3.3 Agency Thinking

This is the motivational component in hope theory. Agentic thinking reflects the self-referential
thoughts regarding moving along a pathway as well as continuing to progress along that pathway.

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3.4 Barriers
Barriers block the attainment of our goals. The individual then has to make a choice to either give
up or use pathway thoughts to create new routes.

Hope Theory

Goals Pathways Agency Barriers

thinking Thinking

Figure 1 depicting the components of hope theory

Combining Pathways and Agentic Thinking

Hopeful thinking involves the perceived capacity to think about workable routes as well as goal
directed thinking. Hope is based on the interaction between successful agency and pathways.

Hope, Barriers, and Emotion

Most views have characterized hope as an emotion while only some have emphasized the
thinking processes in hope theory. Positive emotions come from perceptions of successful goal
pursuit while negative emotions arise from unsuccessful goal pursuits. Therefore, it can be said
that goal-pursuit cognitions cause emotions. Persons who confront insurmountable goal pursuit
but overcome impediments experience positive emotions.

3.5 Full Hope Model (Snyder, Rand & Sigmon, 2005)

According to Snyder, Rand & Sigmon (2005), there is a time sequence of goal directed thought
sequence in hope theory. Newborns undertake pathways thinking immediately after birth. Over
the course of childhood, the child understands the process of causation. The self is perceived as a
causal agent. This goal-directed hopeful thinking is crucial for the survival and well-being of the
child. Parents, and significant others play an important role in this process.

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Figure 2 depicting the feed-forward and feedback functions in Hope theory

(Snyder, Rand & Sigmon, 2005)

The outcome value is important in the pre-event analysis phase. If the imagined outcomes are
important, then the person moves to the event sequence analysis phase. Pathways and agency
thoughts alternate and summate throughout this event sequence to influence subsequent success
in any further goal pursuit.

When a particular goal pursuit has been completed, the person’s thoughts and emotions about it
cycle back. This occurs to influence subsequent pathways and agentic capabilities to affect the
outcome value. The feedback process consists of these specific emotions. Hence, there is a
system of feedback various points in the hope theory.

Generally, goal attainment has been found to be associated with positive emotions, whereas
failures are related to negative emotions. High hope individuals view barriers as challenges and
use pathway thoughts to plan alternative routes. High hope is related to a number of beneficial
outcomes like academic achievement and lower levels of depression.

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4. Related constructs
4.1 Optimism
The theory of optimism given by Seligman (1991) discusses optimism in terms of the attributions
made by a person to explain events especially failures. In hope theory the focus is on reaching
desired positive goal-related outcomes, with emphases on the agency and pathways thoughts. The
outcome is emphasized more in hope theory. Hope theory deals with the etiology of positive and
negative emotions.

4.2 Self-Efficacy
In the self-efficacy theory by Bandura (1982, 1997) the importance of goal-related outcomes has
been specified. This premise is similar to that held in hope theory. Self-efficacy theory focuses on
situation-specific goals, but in hope theory there may be enduring goal-directed thoughts. In self-
efficacy theory outcome expectancies are important. This is similar to pathways thought.

5. Development of hope
Snyder (2000) suggests that hope develops over the course of infancy, childhood and
adolescence. Snyder proposes that there are no hereditary contributions to hope and it is a learned
cognitive set. The basic cause and effect thinking contained in pathways thinking is acquired
from parents and others. Snyder also proposes that strong attachment to caregivers is crucial for
the development of hope. Traumas during the life course contribute to the lessening of hope.

6. Neurobiology of hope
Researches show that there are important connections between the mind and body. Hope also
involves electrochemical connections which help in the functioning of the immune system. Goal-
directed actions are guided by opposing control processes in the central nervous system.
According to Pickering & Gray (1999), these processes are regulated by the Behavioral Inhibition
System (BIS) which responds to punishment, and the Behavioral Activation System (BAS) which
is governed by rewards.

7. Importance of Hope
7.1 Academic achievement
Hope is significantly related to academic achievement. Hopeful students are more confident of
finding various pathways to reach desired goals, and the motivations to pursue those goals.
Hence, low-hope students can benefit by interventions to raise their hopeful thinking.

Hope is positively associated with perceived competence. High-hope students are more
optimistic, and perceive themselves as being capable of solving problems. Hope is related to
positively with self-worth, life satisfaction and wellbeing.

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7.2 Health
Hope predicts physical and mental health, subjective well-
being, effective coping and healthy behaviors.

People with higher levels of hope engage in more preventative behaviors like healthy diet and
physical exercise. Higher hope is also related to benefits in dealing with injuries and disabilities.

7.3 Athletics
Higher hope has been positively related to superior athletic performances. Sports psychologists
and coaches can use hope theory to enhance the performance of athletes.

7.4 Psychological Adjustment

Hope is related positively with positive affect and thoughts and negatively with negative affect
and thoughts.

High-hope individuals also are less likely to use avoidance coping style. When people with high
hope face an obstacle in reaching a goal, they try to find alternative goals. Higher levels of hope
are related to more perceived social support, and more social competence.

7.5 Psychotherapy
Hope theory provides a framework for understanding the shared processes for helping people in
psychotherapy. McNeal (1998) conducted a study of children and adolescents’ hope before and
after they had received psychological treatment in a residential setting. He found that significantly
higher levels of hope were developed during that period.

Hope theory has been used to develop successful individual and group interventions especially in
depression.

7.5.1 Hope therapy

Hope therapy is derived from Snyder’s hope theory and ideas drawn from cognitive-behavior
therapy and narrative therapy. It aims to help clients formulate clear goals and produce various
pathways to attain these goals. It also aims to enable clients to motivate themselves to pursue
their goals and consider obstacles as challenges to be mastered. Hope therapy and attributional
retraining help individuals or groups develop optimism and hope-driven problem-solving
strategies.

8. Enhancing hope
Snyder, et al., (1997) proposed that hopeful stories are important for creating and maintaining a
sense of hope in children. They viewed hopeful stories as a guide for future action. McDermott et
al. (1996) discussed a program in which school children studying in grades 1-6 were read stories
of high-hope children. Classroom discussions addressed how these children can incorporate hope
into their own lives. Modest positive changes were found on measures of hope.

8.1 Enhancing Hope in Students

Hope can be cultivated to strengthen goal achievement. Educational professionals can make a
difference in students' lives by applying hope theory in the schools and thereby providing
suggestions for goals, pathways, and agency.
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They can help students set goals by encouraging goals that

excite students, setting goals according to the age and specific
circumstances of the student. Helping students select several goals so that they can turn to other
important goals when a certain goal is blocked and teaching students how to set clear, concrete
and specific goals are also some of the ways of enhancing hope.

Students can be trained to break down large goals into smaller sub-goals and to make them think
about their goals and identify several routes to reach the goal. They can be trained not to attribute
a blockage to a perceived lack of talent and encouraged to search productively for another route
to reach a goal.

Agency thinking can be developed by ensuring that goals built on personal standards are more
energizing. They can also be encouraged to monitor their self-talk and to talk in positive voices.
Another way is to tell students stories and provide them books based on hope.

8.2 Enhancing Hope in Teachers and Parents

Parents are the primary agents who influence children's hope. They set an example of hope by
their style of communication, goal setting and coping with problems. Teachers too play an
important role in children's perceptions about their competence. School psychologists can
facilitate hope enhancement by working with parents and teachers.

Hope transmission through peer influences should also be focused upon. Ensuring that children
have hope coaches in their lives is important to the development of hope.

9. Collective Hope
As with self-efficacy, researchers in the area of hope have also tried to develop the concept of
collective hope. The idea behind this is that the benefits of hope are extended to as many people
as possible. Collective hope reflects the level of goal directed thinking of a large number of
people (Snyder & Feldman, 2000). This often occurs when many people come together to attain a
goal which is difficult or impossible to be attained alone. Hope theory can be applied to people in
the context of larger units. This concept has been applied to many areas like preservation of
environment, health insurance and political reforms etc.

10. Summary
 Hope has been defined as a human strength. It involves our capacities to set goals,
develop strategies to reach those goals, and maintain motivation for using those
strategies.
 Hope theory can be subdivided into four categories: goals, pathway thoughts, agency
thoughts and barriers.
 Hope develops in a clearly defined way over the course of infancy, childhood and
adolescence.
 Many biological variables are also involved in the process of hope.
 Hope is positively related to academic and athletic achievement, good health and
psychological adjustment.
 Hope can be enhanced by focusing and training on the components of hope.
PSYCHOLOGY PAPER No.9 : POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY
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 Collective hope reflects the level of goal directed thin

PSYCHOLOGY PAPER No.9 : POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY

MODULE No.15 : HOPE