Pollyanna principle Pollyanna principle The Pollyanna principle (also called Pollyannaism or positivity bias) is the tendency for people to remember pleasant items more accurately than unpleasant ones. Research indicates that at the subconscious level, the mind has a tendency to focus on the optimistic; while at the conscious level, it has a tendency to focus on the negative. This subconscious bias towards the positive is often described as the Pollyanna principle and is similar to the Forer effect. The name derives from the 1913 novel "Pollyanna" by Eleanor H. Porter describing a girl who plays the "glad game"—trying to find something to
What Dreams May Come (1983 novel) What Dreams May Come (1983 novel) What Dreams May Come is a novel by American author Manly Wade Wellman. It is the second of three books featuring supernatural investigator John Thunstone. The book derives its title from a line in Hamlet's famous "To be, or not to be..." soliloquy. The character of John Thunstone had previously appeared in a series of short stories by Wellman. Originally published in popular pulp magazines of the day, several of them were collected and reprinted in an anthology, "Lonely Vigils". Wellman decided to follow the anthology with the character's first book-length adventure. In his