The journey from unrealistic to realistic optimism: Ancient Confucian wisdom in modern business practice

Abstract

The notion of “realistic optimism” seems paradoxical, intertwining the contradictory elements of objective judgment and a positive outlook. Extant research often falls short in analyzing this dilemma and in capturing the cultural nuances. Given Confucianism’s endeavors to reconcile realism and optimism, this paper explores the cultivation of realistic optimism in Confucian classics. Further, an account of a contemporary Confucian merchant is provided to illustrate the enduring relevance of these ancient principles in the contemporary business world. This paper highlights two Confucian approaches that facilitate the development of realistic optimism. Firstly, from a preventive stance, “desire modesty” enhances realism by lowering cognitive dissonance and fosters optimism by reducing external motivation that often hinders creative solutions. Secondly, from a promotive perspective, “discernment clarity” promotes realism by cultivating a strong need for cognition; “meaningful adversity” mitigates pessimistic feelings by reframing hardships; and “sincere creativity” bolsters optimism by inspiring innovative solutions. Overall, this paper underscores the crucial role of culture in shaping realistic optimism by illuminating the profound influence of Confucian teachings in transforming this seeming paradox into a lived reality.

Keywords

Confucian merchant Confucianism creativity meaning optimism realistic optimism sincerity

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Amabile

M. (1985). Motivation and creativity: Effects of motivational orientation on creative writers. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 48(2), 393–399. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.48.2.393

Aspinwall

L. G.

Sechrist

G. B.

Jones

P. R.

(2005). Expect the best and prepare for the worst: Anticipatory coping and preparations for Y2K. Motivation and Emotion, 29(4), 353–384. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11031-006-9008-y

Åstebro

Jeffrey

S. A.

Adomdza

G. K.

(2007). Inventor perseverance after being told to quit: The role of cognitive biases. Journal of Behavioral Decision Making, 20(3), 253–272. https://doi.org/10.1002/bdm.554

Bandura

(1999). Social cognitive theory of personality. In Cervone

Shoda

(Eds.), Handbook of personality: Theory and research (2nd ed., pp. 154–196). Guilford Press.

Bedford

Yeh

K.-H.

(2020). The contribution of Chinese process thought to psychology as a global science: Filial piety as an example. Review of General Psychology, 24(2), 99–109. https://doi.org/10.1177/1089268019889337

Billioud

Thoraval

(2015). The sage and the people: The Confucian revival in China. Oxford University Press.

Cacioppo

J. T.

Petty

R. E.

(1982). The need for cognition. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 42(1), 116–131. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.42.1.116

Cacioppo

J. T.

Petty

R. E.

Feinstein

J. A.

Jarvis

W. B. G.

(1996). Dispositional differences in cognitive motivation: The life and times of individuals varying in need for cognition. Psychological Bulletin, 119(2), 197–253. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.119.2.197

Carnevale

J. J.

Inbar

Lerner

J. S.

(2011). Individual differences in need for cognition and decision-making competence among leaders. Personality and Individual Differences, 51(3), 274–278. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2010.07.002

10.

Carver

C. S.

Scheier

M. F.

Miller

C. J.

Fulford

(2009). Optimism. In Lopez

S. J.

Snyder

C. R.

(Eds.), Oxford handbook of positive psychology (2nd ed., pp. 303–311). Oxford University Press.

11.

Chan

W.-T.

(1963). A source book in Chinese philosophy. Princeton University Press.

12.

Chemers

M. M.

Watson

C. B.

May

S. T.

(2000). Dispositional affect and leadership effectiveness: A comparison of self-esteem, optimism, and efficacy. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 26(3), 267–277. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167200265001

13.

Chen

(2014). The ethics of self: Another version of Confucian ethics. Asian Philosophy, 24(1), 67–81. https://doi.org/10.1080/09552367.2014.871116

14.

Chen

(2015). The value of authenticity: Another dimension of Confucian ethics. Asian Philosophy, 25(2), 172–187. https://doi.org/10.1080/09552367.2015.1048070

15.

Chou

S. C.

Cheng

B.-S.

Hwang

K.-K.

S.-H.

(2017). Discovering the psychological mechanism of Confucian missionary entrepreneurs to transcend the dilemma between instrumental and value rationality. Indigenous Psychological Research in Chinese Societies, 47, 305–370. https://doi.org/10.6254/2017.47.305

16.

Csikszentmihalyi

(2020). Finding flow: The psychology of engagement with everyday life. Basic Books.

17.

Eshel

Kimhi

Marciano

Adini

(2021). Components of unrealistic optimism of college students: The case of the COVID-19 pandemic. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 763581. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.763581

18.

Festinger

(1957). A theory of cognitive dissonance. Stanford University Press.

19.

Frankl

V. E.

(1976). Man’s search for meaning. Pocket Books.

20.

Fredrickson

B. L.

(2006). The broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions. In Csikszentmihalyi

Csikszentmihalyi

I. S.

(Eds.), A life worth living: Contributions to positive psychology (pp. 85–103). Oxford University Press.

21.

Hmieleski

K. M.

Baron

R. A.

(2009). Entrepreneurs’ optimism and new venture performance: A social cognitive perspective. Academy of Management Journal, 52(3), 473–488. https://doi.org/10.5465/AMJ.2009.41330755

22.

Hwang

K.-K.

(2015). Cultural system vs. pan-cultural dimensions: Philosophical reflection on approaches for indigenous psychology. Journal for the Theory of Social Behaviour, 45(1), 2–25. https://doi.org/10.1111/jtsb.12051

23.

Hwang

K.-K.

(2012). Foundations of Chinese psychology: Confucian social relations. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-1439-1

24.

Inamori

(2009). A compass to fulfillment: Passion and spirituality in life and business. McGraw Hill.

25.

Inamori

(2020). From zero to Kyocera. PHP Institute.

26.

Jarcho

J. M.

Berkman

E. T.

Lieberman

M. D.

(2010). The neural basis of rationalization: Cognitive dissonance reduction during decision-making. Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, 460–467. https://doi.org/10.1093/scan/nsq054

27.

Joshi

M. S.

Carter

(2013). Unrealistic optimism: East and west? Frontiers in Psychology, 4, 6. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00006

28.

Legge

(1861). The Analects. Chinese Text Project. https://ctext.org/analects

29.

Legge

(1985). Mengzi. Chinese Text Project. https://ctext.org/mengzi

30.

Lenton

A. P.

Slabu

Sedikides

(2016). State authenticity in everyday life. European Journal of Personality, 30(1), 64–82. https://doi.org/10.1002/per.2033

31.

Makridakis

Moleskis

(2015). The costs and benefits of positive illusions. Frontiers in Psychology, 6, 859. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00859

32.

Muller

A. C.

(2018). The doctrine of the mean. Resources for East Asian Language and Thought. https://www.acmuller.net/con-dao/docofmean.html

33.

Muller

A. C.

(2021). The Analects of Confucius. Resources for East Asian Language and Thought. https://www.acmuller.net/con-dao/analects.html

34.

Ryan

R. M.

Deci

E. L.

(2017). Self-determination theory: Basic psychological needs in motivation, development, and wellness. Guilford Press.

35.

Schneider

S. L.

(2001). In search of realistic optimism: Meaning, knowledge, and warm fuzziness. American Psychologist, 56(3), 250–263. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.56.3.250

36.

Schwarzer

(1994). Optimism, vulnerability, and self-beliefs as health-related cognitions: A systematic overview. Psychology and Health, 9(3), 161–180. https://doi.org/10.1080/08870449408407475

37.

Seligman

M. E. P.

(2002). Authentic happiness: Using the new positive psychology to realize your potential for lasting fulfillment. Free Press.

38.

Shah

(2012). Toward a neurobiology of unrealistic optimism. Frontiers in Psychology, 3, 344. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2012.00344

39.

Shi-xu . (2005). A cultural approach to discourse. Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230505391

40.

Shi-xu Prah

K. K.

Pardo

(2016). Discourses of the developing world: Researching properties, problems and potentials. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315780450

41.

Snyder

C. R.

Rand

K. L.

Sigmon

D. R.

(2002). Hope theory: A member of the positive psychology family. In Snyder

C. R.

Lopez

S. J.

(Eds.), Handbook of positive psychology (pp. 257–276). Oxford University Press.

42.

Sundararajan

(2005). Happiness donut: A confucian critique of positive psychology. Journal of Theoretical & Philosophical Psychology, 25(1), 35–60. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0091250

43.

Sungmoon

(2009). Self-transformation and civil society: Lockean vs. Confucian. Dao, 8(4), 383–401. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11712-009-9136-7

44.

Tennen

Affleck

(1987). The costs and benefits of optimistic explanations and dispositional optimism. Journal of Personality, 55(2), 376–393. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6494.1987.tb00443.x

45.

(1985). Confucian thought: Selfhood as creative transformation. State University of New York Press.

46.

Van Norden

(2022). Wang Yangming. The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/win2022/entries/wang-yangming/

47.

Wang

Y.-M.

(2014). Instructions for practical living: and other Neo-Confucian writings by Wang Yang-Ming. Avery Morrow’s Printing and Bagels.

48.

Wunderley

L. J.

Reddy

W. B.

Dember

W. N.

(1998). Optimism and pessimism in business leaders. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 28(9), 751–760. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1559-1816.1998.tb01729.x