Forget Blind Optimism — Here’s a Smarter Way to Believe in the Future

These days, it feels like people are split between two camps: the cynics, who see nothing but selfishness and corruption, and the optimists, who insist everything will somehow work out. Stanford psychology professor Jamil Zaki thinks there’s a better option. In his book, Hope for Cynics: The Surprising Science of Human Goodness, he lays out a case for what he calls “hopeful skepticism.” It’s a worldview that doesn’t deny humanity’s failings, but also doesn’t surrender to despair. Instead, it thr