Thesis Draft

Jessica Kosco
4-5-16

The Right State of Mind: An Inquiry Proposal

I am seldom considered, though I do more to influence everything about you than
virtually any one thing in your life. I often control the time you get up in the morning, the time
you go to sleep, what you eat and drink and the very thought that runs through your head. I can
make you either happy or sad, loving or hateful, cheerful or remorseful, congenial or spiteful and
in doing so, control the very capacity that you have for success.
No, you dont often think of me instead you BLAME the problem I create on the
shortcoming of others, or the state of the economy, or your family or a million other reasons.
Often at times unable to find anyone else to BLAME you look for shortcomings within yourself
on which to lay the BLAME.
When my impact on your life fully is considered in your every thought and action, when
you are mindful of my awesome power, when you nurture and groom me for positive use in your
life, I can become more contagious than the most prolific disease ever witnessed by man. My
influence will spread to every person you come in contact with.
Groomed and nurtured in a positive manner there will be no person or obstacle that can
stand in the way of my success or fail to be impacted for the better.
'I Am Your Attitude'

Thoughts and attitude have a major role in how someone acts and how they interpret their
experiences. From the story above, a persons thoughts has many affects. Thoughts can
determine how your day is going to go, what you are going to eat, how you are going to treat
others around you, and can affect a persons mood. Thoughts and attitudes are closely related to a
persons state of mind.
Ive always wondered how someones state of mind can affect their mood or experience.
A common saying that Ive heard is that bad things happen to good people. Is this because they
have negative thoughts? Or that they arent optimistic? Ive come to learn that not all positive
thoughts will result in positive experiences. For example, when I have positive thoughts about
passing a test or making a certain grade that doesnt always happen. I cant depend solely on
positive thoughts in order to produce the outcome that I want.
A persons state of mind can have a large effect on their thoughts, emotions, experiences,
and feelings. State of mind is how someone views a particular idea, event, or experience. State of
mind is the structural information-processing model of positive and negative functions impacting
cognitions. The state of mind model is investigated for depression, anxiety, anger, life
satisfaction and happiness. This model shows that positive automatic thoughts were positively
correlated with life satisfaction, while negative automatic thoughts were correlated with anxiety,
depression, and anger.
There are five distinct states of mind, according to The Journal of Psychopathology and
Behavioral Assessment, in which three are dialogic and two are monologic. The three dialogic
are positive dialogue, internal dialogue of conflict, and negative dialogue. Shyh Sin Wong, a
psychologist with the Singapore Register of Psychologists and a certified clinical supervisor,
states that The positive dialogue is considered optimal for coping with stress and provides

adaptability for individuals in which internal dialogue not only contains positive thoughts, but
also contains sufficient negative thoughts to be realistically cautious. In other words, positive
dialogue is optimal for coping with stress and allows for individuals to have both positive
thoughts and negative thoughts to be realistic. The internal dialogue of conflict is defined by the
ratio of positive thoughts to total thoughts and is symmetrically balanced. In other words, the
internal dialogue of conflict consists of positive thoughts more than negative thoughts.
The two monologic are positive monologue and negative monologue. Positive
monologue was more optimal than positive dialogue. The negative monologue was associated
with the highest mean depression and anxiety scores. It is thought that positive thoughts will
result in positive outcomes or experiences. Likewise, that negative thoughts will result in
negative outcomes or experiences. However this is not always accurate. Based on my personal
experiences, positive thoughts dont always result in positive experiences.
Positivity is a general determinant of well-being. The label of positivity has been used to
cluster positive emotions of people's day to day lives and to construct behavior and evaluative
tendencies including sense of mastery, self-esteem, life satisfaction, and coping. Positivity is
believed to be based on the functioning from thoughts of self and to the external stimuli
regarding the self. The frequency of positive affect such as feelings and emotions that reflect a
pleasurable engagement with the environment, has been viewed as a key indicator of well-being.
Joy and happiness are examples of this.
Positive automatic thoughts refer to immediate thought that is enlightening. Positive
automatic thought has been associated with many positive healthy outcomes through the effects
on social relationships, cognition, coping, and resiliency. Positive automatic thought is primary
in promoting the sense of personal satisfaction and achievement that one can call happiness.

Happiness is a state of mind and is currently defined by The Journal of Social

Psychology, as a predominance of positive over negative affect and as satisfaction with life as a
whole. Happiness is commonly seen as a trait or an emotional state. Happiness can vary due to
cultural views and ideas. For instance, Luo Lu a psychologist at National Taiwan University in
Taipei studied the cultural values of happiness on the Chinese culture. Chinese peoples
conception of happiness roughly includes material abundance, physical health, a virtuous and
peaceful life, and relief of anxiety about death. In other words, happiness has a variety of effects
and looks different on others in other cultures.
Negativity refers to terms such as lack of affection, understanding, and empathy.
Negativity in relationships have been associated with physical and mental health indicators
including depression. Negative exchanges such as arguing, criticizing, being let down, or the
feeling that the other person makes undue demands, causes tension, or gets on ones nerves. The
accumulation of negative exchanges over time could predict a negative outlook, less successful
problem solving, and stress coping. This increases the chances of anxiety problems and
depressive symptoms.
Negative automatic thoughts are immediate thoughts of a dismissive nature. Negative
automatic thoughts have been found to be associated with depression, anxiety, or anger. Negative
automatic thoughts have been negatively associated with well-being such as happiness.

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