“Think positive” is an old adage that counselors, parents, and other supportive people offer us to stay motivated through tough times. However, positive thinking may carry more power than we first understood. Recent studies have found that with more happy and positive thinking, the human brain and overall health improve.

Imagining Possibilities

Barbara Frederickson, of the University of North Carolina, researched positive thinking and discovered that its impact isn’t just a myth. She learned that it affects our ability to imagine new options and possibilities.

Frederickson conducted a study to test positive thinking. She divided her test subjects into five groups and showed each of the groups a different type of images. The first two groups saw images related to positive emotions, such as joy and contentment. Two other groups saw negative images meant to generate fear and anger. The last group viewed images that produced no significant emotion. Then, researchers asked participants to imagine themselves in a situation where similar feelings would arise. They instructed them write down endings to the statement, “I would like to…”

Overall, the participants who saw positive images generated many more responses. The negative imagery groups generated fewer. The study demonstrated that positive emotions open the mind to more options, whereas those who think negatively act from a narrow point of view.

Seeing the Positive

Many call reliance on positive thinking a “rose-colored glasses” mentality. Interestingly, how we think is actually linked with how we see. Adam Anderson, a University of Toronto psychology professor, published a study in the Journal of Neuroscience. The study shows that your mood changes the way that your visual cortex operates and how you see.

Similar to Frederickson’s test pool, subjects were shown images meant to create a positive, neutral, or negative mood. They then looked at a standard image with a face in the center and objects surrounding the face. When in a bad mood, the subjects were unable to view the surrounding objects, but when in a good mood, they were more perceptive and able to take in more of the ancillary imagery. The study shows that our view of the world expands when in a good mood. Positive thinking truly affects each aspect of our daily life, including the very way we see.

Boosting Moods

Another powerful study, reported in the Journal of Research in Personality, demonstrated the power of motivational writing. Ninety students were asked to write positive stories for 20 minutes each day for three sequential days. Their moods were measured before and after writing to determine if the writing boosted their mood. Over the three days, students who participated in the writing were in considerably better moods than when they started. Their creativity levels skyrocketed. In addition, the students’ health center visits were tracked over the following three months. The students who participated in the study made fewer visits to the health center than other students. So, positive thinking not only benefits your mood, but also your overall health and wellness.

Based on these researchers and studies, when someone tells you to “think positive,” you should listen. The power of positive thinkingcan truly change your outlook on the world, and affect your overall health for a bright future.

PHOTO: Dylan Porteus / CC2.0