Cynics earn less money than optimists, study finds

Optimists earn, on average, more money.

Optimists are often criticized for not having their feet on the ground. Too much optimism can be detrimental, however, especially when you stop being objective and get carried away by unfounded optimism, uesearch reveals that optimistic people earn more money than cynical people..

Cynicism has a price

Being a cynical person comes at a price: it results in making less money. This is the conclusion reached by researchers from the University of Cologne (Germany).The study, published by the APA (American Psychological Association) and headed by Olga Stavrova and Daniel Ehlebracht, states that cynicism is not only affects physical and emotional health, but also affects the wallet.

This only occurs in countries with high levels of altruistic behavior and a low homicide rate. In this group are the Netherlands, Italy, Finland and Sweden.

Cynicism affects health and the wallet

Olga Stravova, researcher at the Institute of Sociology and Social Psychology at the University of Cologne, says: "Previous research on the consequences of having a cynical attitude indicates that it negatively affects different aspects. Cynicism has negative consequences for physical health, psychological well-being, relationship and, as this study states, the cynical person's pocketbook."

This research revealed that optimists earn an average of $3,600 more per year than cynics.. In addition, the latter often miss valuable opportunities to work in teams and cooperate with people who can help them increase their income.

The study used data from Europe and the United States

The study involved more than 16,000 subjects who responded to questionnaires measuring distrust and cynical attitude. These results were then compared with the respondents' income. The participants were people residing in Europe and the United States and the study combines results from different research.

The first research used data from 1,146 participants who took part in an Americans' Changing Lives survey in 2002 and 2011.

The second study used data from 497 participants from a study published in General Social Survey that was conducted in 2010 and 2012. Responses were similar to the study mentioned above.

The third study involved 15,698 Germans who were surveyed annually from 2003 to 2012. The findings were similar in all studies.

Despite the results obtained, Olga Stavrova, the co-author of the research, points out that "paradoxically, in other countries where there is less philanthropy and more antisocial behavior, the most cynical people do not earn less than the optimists. This occurs in countries where this type of attitude is culturally justified".