Positive Reappraisal

Although negative emotions are inevitable, we can actually make them more tolerable by infusing them with positive emotion. Here's how.

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A few years ago, my car’s transmission blew completely. If I had wanted to, I could have stressed out by focusing on the negative things about this experience–it cost about $2,000 to fix, it happened as part of a string of repairs on that car, I desperately needed that car to get to work, and money was really tight. But because I had trained my brain to use reappraisal to focus on the positive, instead of focusing on these negatives, I actually felt gratitude.

My commute to work was an hour each way and I was relieved that this didn’t happen on the highway. I also felt relieved that my partner was in the car with me and helped me get it to an auto shop that day. I even felt happy that third gear was still working, so the car would still drive well enough for me to get it to the auto shop without having to pay to get it towed. By being able to use positive reappraisal, we can handle challenges more easily and get on with our lives. This is why reappraisal counteracts negative emotions, decreases stress, and boosts resilience.

Positive Reappraisal Activity

In this activity, you'll practice using positive reappraisal. Reappraisal has been shown to both increase happiness and resilience and to reduce negative emotions and stress.

Positive reappraisal involves cognitively reframing an event as more positive. For example, let’s say that I dropped my sandwich on the ground and I have nothing else to eat for lunch. I might tell myself that this will be a fun challenge for me or it will give me an opportunity to spend my lunch doing something else I enjoy.

This is a bit different from negative reappraisal which involves reframing an event as less negative.

For this activity, you will get an example of an event that could happen.

Practice reappraising this scenario as more positive. Come up with as many reappraisals as you can over the next few minutes.

Sample Situation:

My boss yelled at me."

What did people say?

Thank you to everyone who submitted your responses to this activity! We can now share some responses. Hopefully these will help you learn new ways to reappraise.

When your boss yells at you, you could positively reappraise the situation by thinking:

Now I know what I need to do differently in the future.
I learned how not to treat others.
My boss had the chance to blow off steam and will be less stressed now.
I might be able to learn something new from what my boss said.
I have the opportunity to self-reflect.
Now I know what my boss is thinking.
I have the opportunity to stand up for myself and show courage.
My boss is invested in my success and wants to see me succeed.
This is a good time to practice patience, love, and wisdom.

Some people responded with negative reappraisal (or decreasing negative emotions) such as:

My boss must be going through a real challenging time.
At least I have a job.
Maybe my boss is having a bad day.
At least he/she noticed me.

Next time you come across a difficult situation see if you can use positive reappraisal in the situation to increase your positive emotions or negative reappraisal to decrease your negative emotions.

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Content Packages:

Positive Reappraisal​

Positive Reappraisal Activity

Sample Situation:

What did people say?

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Positive Reappraisal