填空题 B级 A fast-growing body of research is proving that optimism can help you to be healthier and more successful. Pessimism leads, by contrast, to sickness and failure, and is linked to depression and painful shyness. "If we could teach people to think more positively," says psychologist Michael of Yale University, "it would be like inoculating (接种疫苗) them against these mental ills." "Your abilities count," explains psychologist Smith of Harvard University, "but the belief that you can succeed affects whether or not you will." In part, that's because optimists and pessimists deal with the same challenges and disappointments in very different ways. Negative or positive, it was a self-fulfilling prophecy (预言). "If people feel hopeless," says Smith, "they don't bother to acquire the skills they need to succeed." on the contrast, the optimist feels in control of his own life. If things are going badly, he acts quickly, looking for solutions, and reaching out for advice. So, if you're a pessimist, there's reason for you to change. Positive thinking leads to positive reaction. What you expect from the world, the evidence' suggests, is what you're likely to get.