The University of Macau (UM) hosted a talk this week on why some people bounce back from hard times better than others. The answer, says the speaker, has a lot to do with "mindset" — how a person thinks about their own ability to change. This matters because it suggests resilience isn't just luck or genetics. It's something people can actually build.
Quick Take
- UM held its 35th Scholar Research Forum on October 20.
- Professor Chi Peilian, from UM's Department of Psychology, gave the talk titled "Mindset Matters: Why Some People Thrive Despite Adversity."
- "Mindset" means your belief about whether your abilities and life situation can change.
- The talk covered how mindset affects learning, well-being, resilience, and even the body's stress response.
- Prof Chi also looked at how family environment shapes mindset, and whether training can shift it.
What the Talk Was About
UM runs a regular event called the Scholar Research Forum, where professors share their research with students and staff. This was the 35th one, held on October 20. The room was full of students and faculty, a sign that this topic hit a nerve.
The speaker was Chi Peilian, a professor in UM's Department of Psychology. She's also part of the Centre for Cognitive and Brain Sciences, a research group that studies how the brain and thinking work together. Her talk's title says it all: "Mindset Matters: Why Some People Thrive Despite Adversity."
Why Mindset Might Matter as Much as Background
Scientists already know that things like family background, money struggles, and tough life events can shape how a person grows up. Prof Chi didn't dispute that. But she pointed to newer research showing something else plays a huge role too: how people interpret their own situation.
That's where "mindset" comes in. Prof Chi defines it simply: it's what you believe about whether your abilities and your life circumstances can actually change.
Mindset is defined as one's beliefs about whether their abilities and life situations can change.
In plain terms, two people can face the exact same hard situation. One believes they're stuck. The other believes they can grow and improve. According to Prof Chi's research, that difference in belief can change the outcome.
How Mindset Affects the Body and Mind
Prof Chi's talk went beyond just feelings. She explained that mindset can influence learning — how well someone picks up new skills. It can affect well-being, meaning how happy and healthy someone feels day to day. It also shapes resilience, or the ability to recover after something goes wrong.
Here's the part that might surprise people: Prof Chi said mindset can even affect biological stress responses. That means what you believe about your ability to change isn't just a mental trick. It may actually shape how your body reacts to stress, physically.
Where Mindset Comes From — and Whether It Can Be Changed
Prof Chi also dug into where mindset comes from in the first place. She looked at the role of family environments in shaping how people think about their own potential. In other words, how you were raised may plant the seeds of your mindset early on.
The bigger question she raised: can mindset be changed later, even after childhood? Prof Chi explored whether educational programs and psychological interventions (programs designed to shift how people think or feel) can actually shift someone's mindset as an adult.
| Topic Covered | What It Means |
|---|---|
| Learning | How mindset affects picking up new skills |
| Well-being | How mindset affects daily happiness and health |
| Resilience | How mindset affects bouncing back from setbacks |
| Stress response | How mindset affects the body's physical reaction to stress |
| Family environment | How upbringing shapes mindset early on |
| Interventions | Whether training programs can change mindset later |
Why It Matters
Prof Chi's talk offers a hopeful message: adversity doesn't have to define someone's future. If mindset can be shaped and even changed through the right support, that opens the door to real tools — in schools, in therapy, in everyday parenting — for helping people grow stronger after hard times. For UM students and faculty who attended, the takeaway is simple: how you think about change might be just as powerful as the change itself.
Source: University of Macau
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