The concepts of optimism (Latin optimus - the best) and pessimism (Latin pessimus - the worst) are considered from a philosophical, sociological, and socio-psychological point of view. In the psychological interpretation of the concept of “optimism”, there are quite a large number of its definitions: both as a personality trait, and as a person’s positive attitude towards life and reality, and as a special positive attitude, and as a way of thinking, etc. There are several areas in psychology studying optimism. The study of dispositional optimism is one of the most well-known areas, the founders and most authoritative representatives of which can be considered C. Carver and M. Scheier. This approach is based on the general theory of self-regulation of behavior - the theory (or model) of “Expected Value” by J. Atkinson. This model is based on the postulate that behavior is built around a certain goal and is aimed at achieving it. From the point of view of a person's motives, goals can have different significance or value. The second main element of this model is expectation, which is expressed in a feeling of confidence or doubt about achieving a goal. If a person does not have enough confidence in the achievability of the goal, then he will not make efforts. Doubt can prevent an action from being initiated or destroy an action while it is being completed. Only if a person has enough confidence does he initiate action and continue his attempts to achieve the goal when faced with obstacles. When people are confident in ultimate success, they continue to act even in the face of significant difficulties. When speaking about optimism/pessimism, C. Carver and M. Scheier mean a broad, manifested in different situations, feeling of confidence or doubt associated with generalized concerns different areas of life, positive or negative expectations. When faced with an obstacle, optimists are more likely to act with confidence and persistence (even if progress towards the goal is small), while pessimists are prone to doubt and hesitation. Optimists are confident that the obstacle can somehow be overcome, while pessimists expect failure. Therefore, optimists can be called people who tend to have positive expectations about the future; pessimists, accordingly, are more prone to negative expectations. In our research, we adhered to this approach, in which optimism and pessimism are defined through the characteristics of a person’s expectations; it was this approach that turned out to be closest to us. Adolescents were the study sample of scientific interest. 120 ninth grade students from gymnasiums No. 7 and No. 11 in Minsk took part, of which 60 boys and 60 girls. A number of questions had to be answered: to what extent do teenagers have optimistic expectations, do optimistic teenagers really experience less fears, or at least , they are less pronounced in them, etc. The following psychodiagnostic techniques were used in the study: questionnaire “Types of fears” by I.P. Shkuratova; LOT technique (Life Orientation Test - “Life Orientation Test” by M. Scheyer and C. Carver). All research data obtained were processed using the STATISTICA.7.0 software package. When analyzing the results obtained from the LOT technique, aimed at measuring dispositional optimism, the following data were obtained: pronounced optimism was detected in 68% of adolescents, pessimism – in 32%. This means that more than half of the subjects believe in themselves and in positive life prospects. Such teenagers are characterized by an active search for a solution to a problem, do not get hung up on the reasons for their failures and problems, and are distinguished by energy, fortitude, and willpower. 32% of respondents are sometimes ready to give in to difficulties, be content with little, and perhaps deny or ignore problems. Often such teenagers are characterized by a depressed mood, a decreased will to do anything.achievements. No significant gender differences were identified in this sample: 67% of girls and 70% of boys have optimistic views on life, respectively, 33% of girls and 30% of boys have pessimistic views. This was confirmed by statistical processing - the reliability of the differences in the expression of optimism between the samples of boys and girls was Ump = 1555 above Ucr 0.05 = 1486. ​​When interpreting the data obtained during the “Types of Fears” methodology, it can be stated that in 84% of adolescents the prevailing low level of fears, which is quite natural for this age group. Among all types of fears, phobias predominate among the subjects (32%). Most respondents are afraid of the death of loved ones, illness, medical procedures, darkness, and heights. Most likely, they originate in preschool age, in primary school, when phobias predominate among all types of fears. As they grow older, they decrease, but, as it turned out, they retain their place in adolescence. Social fears were identified in a quarter of the subjects (25%) and educational fears in 22%. In other words, teenagers are afraid of negative evaluation from others, they are afraid of criticism, betrayal and loss of love from loved ones. Social fears associated with relationships with other people increase precisely in adolescence, since at this stage of development the leading activity is communication with peers. Educational fears include: fear of getting a bad grade, fear of answering at the blackboard, calling parents to school. Despite the fact that educational activity, as a leading activity, fades into the background, educational fears are also widespread among adolescents. Criminal fears are present in 12% of adolescents, mystical fears in 9%. Gender differences were identified mainly in educational and social fears: girls experience social fears more acutely, and boys experience educational fears more acutely. The significance of the differences was proven using the Mann-Whitney U test. The differences between the two groups are significant because Uem=1251.5 is lower than Ucr 0.01=1356. The study also revealed the presence of a possible connection between optimism (pessimism) and certain types of fears. The indicators of all variables had a distribution different from normal. Therefore, further statistical processing was carried out using nonparametric statistical methods - using correlation analysis using the Spearman formula. A direct significant connection was found in girls between fears and pessimism (r = 0.34 at p < 0.05); in boys it is extremely weak (r = 0.12 at p < 0.05). Perhaps this may be due to the fact that the presence of fears in adolescents does not contradict their belief in positive life prospects, in themselves and their environment; does not incline them towards optimism or pessimism. As for the presence of a connection between certain types of fears and optimism/pessimism, they were identified only in teenage girls. The results are shown in Table 1. Table 1 - Relationships between types of fears and optimism/pessimism in Spearman girls (girls) p-level phobias & optimism -0.32 0.01 phobias & pessimism 0.33 0.009 academic & pessimism 0.29 0.02 social & pessimism 0.32 0.01 criminal & pessimism 0.27 0.03 mystical & pessimism 0, 26 0.04 Note. The table includes only significant correlation coefficients. No significant correlations were identified in the youth sample, which may indicate the absence or insignificance of this connection. Thus, the results of the study prove that this is a problem mainly for girls. So, the results obtained in the study indicate that a third of the entire sample of girls and boys are more susceptible to pessimism. However, the majority of teenagers (67% of girls and 70% of boys) have an optimistic outlook on life, they have a positive attitude towards life and reality, they have faith in themselves, a feeling of confidence in achieving their goals, etc. This is.