Hope

Hope involves both anticipating a desirable future and the belief that you will be able to find ways to make this happen. Snyder (2002) defines trait hope as an aspect of personality that involves thinking about the future, with two components: agency and pathways. The ability to devise multiple ways of reaching a desired goal is known as pathways thinking, whereas the motivation to implement these pathways and the individual’s belief that they can successfully achieve their desired goals are described as agency. For example, hoping you can increase your level of exercise could involve the belief that you can think of multiple ways to incorporate 30 min of exercise into each day (pathways), that this is important for you personally, and that you believe you can achieve it most days even in the face of obstacles (agency). Contrasting with Snyder’s definition, others (e.g., Scioli et al. 2012) have argued hope is broader and includes emotional, interpersonal, and spiritual aspects (e.g., anticipated pleasure when health improves, having a supportive network of friends, and the belief in a benevolent higher power and/or a sense of purpose in life, respectively). In this definition, hope is possible without an individual necessarily holding the belief that they personally can bring about the desired future (e.g., hoping that others or God may help them overcome or cope with an illness).