ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the optimism-loneliness associations in which the people with low optimism levels may be less successful in initiating meaningful relationships with friends or family members, and this is reflected in the experience of loneliness. It talks about the pessimistic people do not expect events to have positive outcomes and therefore will be less willing to take action that can change bad circumstances, such as loneliness. The explanation of the optimism-loneliness association depends on how the association is viewed in terms of cause and effect relationships. The chapter describes the center on optimism as a factor or cause of loneliness and then several other possibilities, based on the opposite causal chain or on accounting for false correlations. Loneliness may lead to low optimism through the mediation of negative feelings such as depression, negative affect, and general dysphoria, which result from perceived lack of meaningful relationships and social support and lead to lower levels of optimism.
