What is Reappraisal—And How Do You Do It?

What is Reappraisal?

Reappraisal involves cognitively reframing an event to reduce its negative impact. 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 I am better off than people in the world who don’t have any food. Or I might tell myself that it’s not so bad because I can get a snack later in the day. Or maybe I tell myself that it’s good I dropped my sandwich because it will help me stay on my diet.

Why is it important to build reappraisal ability?

When we change the way we are thinking about our experiences we don’t let life’s slings and arrows get to us as much. We are able to see challenges as opportunities and begin to view our lives in terms of strengths instead of weaknesses. An ability to successfully reappraise enables us to reduce negative emotions and open us up to experiencing happiness, even during difficult times.

How to practice positive reappraisal

By practicing finding the benefits of past event, experiences, or challenges, you can strengthen your reappraisal ability.

To practice reappraisal, start by writing out a list of things you learned from a past failure. For example, if you missed an important deadline, maybe you learned that you need to prioritize better, delegate more, or tone down your perfectionism.

Ask yourself these questions to help you reappraise:

• Were there, or will there be, any positive outcomes that result from this situation?
• Are you grateful for any part of this situation?
• In what ways are you better off than when you started?
• What did you learn?
• How did you grow and develop as a result of this situation?

​Activities to develop reappriasal:

There are actually two types of reappraisal: Negative reappraisal and positive reappraisal. These  focus on slightly different strategies. Try both reappraisal strategies to see which works best for you.

Negative Reappraisal

Negative reappraisal involves cognitively reframing a negative event as less negative.  In this activity, you learn the emotion skill, negative reappraisal. ​

Positive Reappraisal

Positive reappraisal involves cognitively reframing a negative event as more positive. In this emotion activity, you learn the emotion skill, positive reappraisal.

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About Dr. Tchiki Davis

Dr. Davis is the founder of The Berkeley Well-Being Institute. After getting her PhD in psychology at UC Berkeley, she started building online courses, apps, and products to boost well-being—products that have reached more than a million people. Now an author at Psychology Today, The Greater Good Science Center, and Shine Text, Dr. Davis's expertise on how to boost well-being reaches people all across the world.

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