Investigating the Connection Between Scientists and Low Optimism

Scientists are less optimistic than the general public; however, no prior research has attempted to determine if scientists have low optimism when they choose to become scientists or if they become less optimistic as a result of their education and training. This dissertation examines this gap by comparing Physical Science students to English and History students when grouped by their years of experience in higher education. Psychometric surveys and a background information survey were distributed to students attending public universities in the same state located in the Southeastern United States. The surveys measured Psychological Capital which includes Hope, Optimism, Self-Efficacy, and Resilience, as well as Big Five personality traits. All surveys were completed in the same semester to help minimize the effects of historical context such as proximity to COVID-19. Analyses found that there were no significant differences between Physical Science Students grouped by years of higher education; however, 3rd year History students, and 4th year English students had significantly lower Optimism measured with the Compound Psychological Capital Scale 12 Revised (CPC 12R). Additionally, there were no significant differences in Big Five Traits between the majors. These results indicate that Physical Science students are not losing Psychological Capital during their studies; however, they are not making any significant gains either. Further, the mean scores for each group in this study were lower than previously reported data collected from large samples, suggesting that many university students are suffering from lower Psychological Capital than average, not just the science students.