Dr. Jamil Zaki

tend to become cynical through those struggles.

So for instance, people who have lower economic opportunities tend to mistrust more.

People who have been traumatized tend to trust less.

People who have had difficult family upbringings where they don't feel like they can count on people in their immediate environment, they tend to be more cynical too.

So I think oftentimes I see, you talk to a cynic

And they often have a kind of sneering, almost sense of superiority, like they're wiser or smarter than other people.

I actually think if you dig down, oftentimes they're responding to pain and betrayal.

The comedian George Carlin once said, scratch a cynic and you'll find a disappointed idealist.

And I think that there's a lot to that.

I think so.

So there is a genetic component to it, but it's a very small minority.

So your genes explain very little of how cynical you are, which leaves your experience.

And some experiences are personal.

Others are collective.

So for instance, when people are put in really competitive environments,

Think about a company, for instance, where you are pitted against your colleagues and only some of you can rise to the top and you're in a zero-sum environment.

Those circumstances can make us more cynical, whereas being in a cooperative environment where people work together and are rewarded together can decrease our cynicism and make us mentally healthier.

I hear this all the time.

People tell me, I'm not a cynic, I'm a realist.

But there is a lot of evidence to the contrary.