It remains meaningful to distinguish optimism from pessimism: Reply to VanderWeele and Kubzansky (2021).

VanderWeele and Kubzansky (2021) provide a commentary on Scheier et al. (2021), in which they introduce the distinction between what they term comparative and absolute optimism. We believe that more conceptual and empirical work is needed before a full understanding of the meaning and implications of the terms can be known.

Optimism versus pessimism as predictors of physical health: A comprehensive reanalysis of dispositional optimism research.

Prior research has related dispositional optimism to physical health. Traditionally, dispositional optimism is treated as a bipolar construct, anchored at one end by optimism and the other by pessimism. Optimism and pessimism, however, may not be diametrically opposed, but rather may reflect 2 independent, but related dimensions.