Rob
Hello, and welcome to 6 Minute English from BBC Learning English I'm Rob…
Georgina
And I'm Georgina
Rob
Now, Georgina, how resilient are you?
Georgina
Resilient? You mean able to cope with difficult situations I have a pile of work to
do today, but I’m remaining calm and not getting stressed
Rob
That's good, you are showing resilience And today we’re discussing whether
we’re born with resilience or we have to learn it
Georgina
OK, Rob But first I expect you’re going to ask me a question – bring it on!
Rob
OK Resilience is also a word used in science to describe the characteristic of a
substance or object But what does it mean?
a) That it's is very tough or hard
b) That it can return to its original shape after being bent
c) It can turn from a solid into a liquid quickly
Georgina
I have a feeling it means b) an object that returns to its original shape after being
bent
Rob
OK, I'll let you know if you were correct at the end of the programme But let’s
talk more about human resilience There are many self-help books and
motivational speakers all promising us we can learn to be resilient
Georgina
Well, it is a useful trait to have, and it’s something that can help you deal with
many difficult situations from coping with the pressures of work to handling the
death of a loved one
Rob
And it’s more than just telling someone to ‘toughen up’ or ‘get a grip’, as Dr
David Westley knows He is Head of Psychology at Middlesex University and
talked about levels of resilience on the BBC World Service programme, The Why
Factor
Dr David Westley, Head of Psychology at Middlesex University
First of all, there's our social supports, our communities, our families, the people
who are important to us, the organisations we work for, so one way we can look
at resilience is to measure that – the amount of social support available to us
Another way to think about resilience is to think about how we think about the
situations we are in So, for example, one way to look at that would be just to
look at how optimistic people are as a guide to how resilient they might be when
times get tough And then a third level that we can look at for resilience is a
biological level - how well we can soothe ourselves, calm ourselves down, how
well we can actually regulate our own nervous systems at times of distress
Georgina
Right, so Dr Westley describes social supports – the people around us who we
can talk to and support us and generally make us feel better I think he’s saying,
with more support we'll feel more resilient
Rob
It’s interesting to note that a resilient person isn’t necessarily someone quiet,
who doesn’t make a fuss and gets on with things Some experts think it’s people
who ask for help and use this social support network who are acting in a more
resilient way
Georgina
It’s a good point And another level of resilience is how optimistic someone is
Being optimistic means having positive thoughts about the future and believing
things will turn out well A positive mind means you can deal with situations that,
at first, look tough Another level Dr Westley mentioned was our biological level
- how our bodies cope in times of distress Distress is the feeling you get when
you are worried or upset by something
Rob
So, when we’re distressed, a resilient person is able to sooth his or her body and
regulate his or her nervous system, which helps them stay calm
Georgina
But, Rob, the big question is, are we born with resilience or can we learn it?
Experts speaking on The Why Factor programme tended to think it could be
learned
Rob
Yes, one of them is Ann Masten, a professor at the University of Minnesota From
her studies, she found it was something that we learn when we need to
Georgina
Ann Masten talks about how some of the children she studied manifest resilience
from the start When something manifests, it shows clearly and is easy to notice
They remain resilient despite adversity – a difficult time in their life they have
had to face
Rob
Other children, what she calls the late bloomers, started off less resilient,
struggled with adversity, but turned their lives around by becoming more
resilient Maybe we can learn resilience from a having a bad experience?
Georgina
Well, one thing Ann went on to say was that families and friends can be a great
support and help with resilience Those that were ‘late bloomers’ only connected
with adults and mentors later in life
Rob
Yes, she says that teachers or parents are role models in how to handle adversity
And children are watching; they're learning from the adults around them by
seeing how they react when they get challenged by something
Time now to find out how resilient you are when you discover the correct answer
to the question I asked earlier I said that ‘resilience’ is also a word used in
science to describe the characteristic of a substance or object But what does
that mean? Is it…
a) It is very tough or hard
b) It can return to its original shape after being bent
c) It can turn from a solid into a liquid quickly
And what did you say, Georgina?
Georgina
I said it was b) It can return to its original shape after being bent
Rob
And you are right - well done! Bamboo is a good example of a resilient material –
you can bend it, it doesn’t break and returns to its original shape
Georgina
Thanks for the science lesson, Rob Now we need to recap the vocabulary we’ve
mentioned today…
Rob
Yes, we’ve talked about being resilient, an adjective that describes someone’s
ability to cope with difficult situations When you do this you show resilience
Georgina
Someone who is optimistic has positive thoughts about the future and believes
things will turn out well
Rob
Distress is the feeling you get when you are worried or upset by something
Georgina
When something manifests itself, it shows clearly and is easy to notice And
adversity is a difficult time in somebody’s life that they've had to face
Rob
And that brings us to the end of this discussion about resilience Please join us
again next time Bye bye
Georgina
Bye
VOCABULARY
resilient (adjective)
able to cope with difficult situations or to improve quickly after an illness or
injury
resilience (noun)
ability to cope with difficult situations or improve quickly after an illness or injury
optimistic
have positive thoughts about the future and believe things will turn out well
distress
feeling you get when you are worried or upset by something
manifest
show clearly and is easy to notice
adversity
difficult situation in somebody’s life
