What is the difference between faith and optimism bias?

Compare and contrast faith and optimism bias. I swear this is not homework or a test question. It is a part of my individual search for clarification. So what is the difference between the good of believing things will work out well, permitting a person to enthusiastically engage in activity and the possible error of ignoring the realistic risks involved?








http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Optimism_bi…


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faith|||Hope—Vital to Happiness


A recently promoted concept dubbed positive psychology holds that optimism, cultivated by positive thinking and by focusing on one’s personal strengths, can lead to happiness. Few would deny that an optimistic view of life and of the future adds to our happiness. However, such optimism has to be based on fact, not just on wishful thinking. Besides, no amount of optimism or positive thinking will eliminate war, starvation, disease, pollution, old age, sickness, or death—things that rob so many of their happiness. Nonetheless, optimism does have its place.


Interestingly, the Bible does not use the word optimism; it uses a more powerful word—hope. Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary defines “hope” as used in the Bible as “favorable and confident expectation, . . . the happy anticipation of good.” In Bible usage, hope is more than an optimistic view of a situation. It also refers to the thing upon which one’s hope is fixed. (Ephesians 4:4; 1 Peter 1:3) The Christian hope, for instance, is that all the undesirable things mentioned in the preceding paragraph will soon be done away with. (Psalm 37:9-11, 29) But it embraces more.


Christians look forward to the time when faithful humans will attain to perfect life on a paradise earth. (Luke 23:42, 43) Enlarging on that hope, Revelation 21:3, 4 says: “Look! The tent of God is with mankind, and he will reside with them, and they will be his peoples. . . . And he will wipe out every tear from their eyes, and death will be no more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be anymore. The former things have passed away.”


Anyone who expects to have such a future has every reason to be happy, even if his present circumstances leave much to be desired. (James 1:12) So why not investigate the Bible and find out why you can believe it. Strengthen your hope by spending time each day reading the Bible. Doing so will enrich you spiritually, help you avoid the things that rob people of happiness, and build up your sense of contentment. Yes, the ultimate secret to real happiness is doing the will of God. (Ecclesiastes 12:13) A life built on obeying the Bible’s precepts is a happy life, for Jesus said: “Happy are those hearing the word of God and keeping it!”—Luke 11:28.|||Well since I am a naturally optimistic person but have no faith I would say that faith is belief without any evidence and no possibility of any evidence. Optimism is something that you can eventually prove or disprove.





Another difference is that being optimistic is probably an innate trait that is genetically determined. But faith is a learn behavior and a value system that imagines that things that are not provable are somehow more true than things that are.|||Optimism biased is not based on truth and faith is. We can, based on our study of the laws of the universe( which has been created by God) have faith in His truth. Whether they be laws of the natural or principles revealed in His word, we can rely on or have faith in or "TRUST" His unchanging ways.


Optimism bias on the other hand is not based on truth. Eg; A child states that their grade in a certain course will be based on the fact that their parent is the instructor. However, whether or not the child receives a good grade, the actual or true grade is based on their knowledge, understanding, application and execution.


This is a great example for all of us to understand that absolute truth does indeed exist and that we should be in pursuit of it constantly. The other choice is to live in a world like that of the example above with the child/parent scenario. The child learns to live in a world which they have conceived/ perceived based on optimism bias rather than truth.|||Being optimistic is a viewpoint with no "force" behind it. God has a plan and sometimes it isn't always optimistic in a relative sense depending on the circumstances.





I am a Christian and I am very aware of ORM concepts for example. I don't ignore risks at all and the people that do ignore them actually lower their chance of success. Faith and being well prepared are two different subjects.





The first person answering is not an atheist. Atheists by the definition are not stating absolutely there can never be proof.





A true atheist is someone who states that so far they have not been convinced of God, but if sufficient evidence/proof were available then they would believe.





To state there -never- will be proof is an absolute.|||Optimism Bias is something we all tend to do from time to time. It's when you over estimate the likelihood of something good happening. Faith on the other hand is to believe in something with the absence of physical evidence.





So for example when you play the lotto and think you'll win that is optimism bias.





When you believe in a religious figure and their teachings as truth, that is faith.|||It's the object of dependency, as I see it. Optimism is dependent on looking at things positively. While faith . . . at least as I know it and practice it, has a particular purpose in the things of God: What He said, what He has done, what He will do. Without the promises of God in mind, I would most likely arbitrarily depend on God for whatever I thought He would do, instead of what He said He would do. If I was only an optimist, I would just be hoping for the best, without any focus on the God who is supposed to be watching out for me.|||Having faith doesn't always mean positive outcomes.


Example: my faith is in Nature. I already know that when a natural event takes place, most likely there will be more negative outcome for humans than positive.


The optimism is that Nature does what it does to preserve itself, regardless of what humans endure for it.|||God has given me the joy of Jesus and the divine ability to see this beautiful world as He does and to see the beauty and the good and the God in all.


'and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, LORD God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come."|||Of course faith requires optimism or the fact that you believe that what you have faith in is correct. Their is nothing wrong with this, in fact without it their is little faith at all. One must believe and act on that which they have faith in. Other wise faith is just a wish and is vanity. Have you ever heard the statement: Faith without works is dead? Or the one that states that without faith nothing is possible? In fact if you are familiar with the stories in the New Testament which tell of the healing's and miracles that Jesus performed you will find that Christ himself stated many times that without faith healing would not occur.





With that said, it is much easier to have faith in spiritual things when you have gone to God in prayer and feel like you have received an answer to your prayer through the promptings and still small voice of the Holy Ghost.





Their are some that will tell you that this is not possible, that this is not reality, but these same people will also deny that anything that you cannot see with your eyes or touch with your hands or examine with the finite and so called logical mind cannot be true. How arrogant is this attitude. How can a person who holds these beliefs ever receive truth from God when they first refuse to even consider that they could receive it or that it possibly might be true?





It is like taking a thirsty horse to a pure cold brook and having that horse die of thirst because it refuses to drink. One must muster up a little faith before one will ever receive an answer from God!





Their are some very interesting writings about faith in a book I believe to be true, The Book of Mormon. Even if you do not believe in the book, the writings are profound and I think will answer your question about faith. I am giving you the link to a chapter in it. The chapter is fairly short and I think you will enjoy it. In it Alma, an ancient prophet is speaking to a group of the poor who have been cast out of their places of worship because they were poor and didn't fit the part of the supposed worshiper. Though the whole chapter is good the part that applies most to your question is from verse 21 to 43. Alma outlines the way that they can know for sure if something is true or not and how faith is essential to discovering truth. Happy reading, and good luck friend!


http://scriptures.lds.org/en/alma/32