Editing Thought (section)

===Positive thinking===
Positive thinking is an important topic in [[positive psychology]].<ref name="Khalid"/> It involves focusing one's attention on the positive aspects of one's situation and thereby withdrawing one's attention from its negative sides.<ref name="Khalid">{{cite journal |last1=Khalid |first1=Ruhi |title=Positive Thinking in Coping with Stress and Health outcomes: Literature Review |journal=Journal of Research and Reflections in Education |date=June 2010 |volume=4 |issue=1 |pages=42–61 |url=https://www.academia.edu/30299598}}</ref> This is usually seen as a global outlook that applies especially to thinking but includes other mental processes, like feeling, as well.<ref name="Khalid"/> In this sense, it is closely related to [[optimism]]. It includes expecting positive things to happen in the future.<ref name="Scheier"/><ref name="Khalid"/> This positive outlook makes it more likely for people to seek to attain new goals.<ref name="Khalid"/> It also increases the probability of continuing to strive towards pre-existing goals that seem difficult to reach instead of just giving up.<ref name="Scheier">{{cite journal |last1=Scheier |first1=Michael F. |last2=Carver |first2=Charles S. |title=On the Power of Positive Thinking: The Benefits of Being Optimistic |journal=Current Directions in Psychological Science |date=1 February 1993 |volume=2 |issue=1 |pages=26–30 |doi=10.1111/1467-8721.ep10770572 |s2cid=145393172 |url=https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1111/1467-8721.ep10770572?journalCode=cdpa |language=en |issn=0963-7214}}</ref><ref name="Khalid"/>

The effects of positive thinking are not yet thoroughly researched, but some studies suggest that there is a correlation between positive thinking and well-being.<ref name="Khalid"/> For example, students and pregnant women with a positive outlook tend to be better at dealing with stressful situations.<ref name="Scheier"/><ref name="Khalid"/> This is sometimes explained by pointing out that stress is not inherent in stressful situations but depends on the agent's interpretation of the situation. Reduced stress may therefore be found in positive thinkers because they tend to see such situations in a more positive light.<ref name="Khalid"/> But the effects also include the practical domain in that positive thinkers tend to employ healthier coping strategies when faced with difficult situations.<ref name="Khalid"/> This effects, for example, the time needed to fully recover from surgeries and the tendency to resume physical exercise afterward.<ref name="Scheier"/>

But it has been argued that whether positive thinking actually leads to positive outcomes depends on various other factors. Without these factors, it may lead to negative results. For example, the tendency of optimists to keep striving in difficult situations can backfire if the course of events is outside the agent's control.<ref name="Scheier"/> Another danger associated with positive thinking is that it may remain only on the level of unrealistic fantasies and thereby fail to make a positive practical contribution to the agent's life.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Oettingen |first1=Gabriele |last2=Cachia |first2=Julie Y. A. |title=Handbook of Self-Regulation: Third Edition: Research, Theory, and Applications |date=2017 |url=https://www.guilford.com/books/Handbook-of-Self-Regulation/Vohs-Baumeister/9781462533824/contents |chapter=30. Problems with Positive Thinking and How to Overcome Them}}</ref> [[Defensive pessimism|Pessimism]], on the other hand, may have positive effects since it can mitigate disappointments by anticipating failures.<ref name="Scheier"/><ref>{{cite book |last1=Thomas |first1=Sandra P. |title=Encyclopedia of Personality and Individual Differences |date=2020 |publisher=Springer International Publishing |isbn=978-3-319-24612-3 |pages=1036–1038 |chapter-url=https://link.springer.com/referenceworkentry/10.1007%2F978-3-319-24612-3_1061 |language=en |chapter=Defensive Pessimism|doi=10.1007/978-3-319-24612-3_1061 |s2cid=243736790 }}</ref>

Positive thinking is a recurrent topic in the self-help literature.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Peale |first1=Norman Vincent |title=The Power of Positive Thinking |publisher=Om Books International |isbn=978-93-85609-89-3 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=A0u0DAAAQBAJ |language=en}}</ref> Here, often the claim is made that one can significantly improve one's life by trying to think positively, even if this means fostering beliefs that are contrary to evidence.<ref name="Seligman"/> Such claims and the effectiveness of the suggested methods are controversial and have been criticized due to their lack of scientific evidence.<ref name="Seligman">{{cite book |last1=Seligman |first1=Martin E. P. |title=Authentic Happiness: Using the New Positive Psychology to Realize Your Potential for Lasting Fulfillment |date= 2002 |publisher=Simon and Schuster |isbn=978-0-7432-4788-7 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_JaY2K2dhC0C |language=en |chapter=6. Optimism about the Future}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Woodstock |first1=Louise |title=Think About It: The Misbegotten Promise of Positive Thinking Discourse |journal=Journal of Communication Inquiry |date=1 April 2007 |volume=31 |issue=2 |pages=166–189 |doi=10.1177/0196859906298177 |s2cid=145436993 |url=https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0196859906298177 |language=en |issn=0196-8599}}</ref> In the [[New Thought movement]], positive thinking figures in the [[Law of attraction (New Thought)|law of attraction]], the pseudoscientific claim that positive thoughts can directly influence the external world by attracting positive outcomes.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Chabris |first1=Christopher F. |last2=Simons |first2=Daniel J. |title=Fight 'The Power' |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/26/books/review/Chabris-t.html |website=The New York Times |date=24 September 2010}}</ref>