Mary Is a Graduate Student Studying to Be a Psychologist

Mary is a graduate student studying to be a psychologist. The schooling is quite rigorous, and the academic pressures are high. For some reason, the competition between classmates is intense. Mary's overall attitude, however, is that of a positive outlook. She believes that she will finish school soon and will do well in the process. She also expects that she will learn how to be a successful psychologist. Based on this scenario, Mary seems to demonstrate the quality of _____, which has been shown to somehow buffer the effects of stress and illness.

A) the Type D behavior pattern
B) cheerfulness
C) optimism
D) the Type A behavior pattern