In the nursing field we are hearing a lot of controversy about the word resilience. All during the pandemic, everyone kept saying how resilient nurses were. At first, it was fine. But after a bit, one wondered if they are just considered resilient by administrators so that they didn't have to worry about how they're doing or their mental health. Now I saw a similar discussion about resilience in children on Medscape. One side thinks children really are resilient. The other side thinks it's a cop-out, again, for not having to protect and support our kids. One physician commented, "Maybe I am an old codger, but I am sick of having people tell me what words to use."

Have you seen discussions of this word recently? What are your thoughts?

I haven't seen any discussion of it but my first thought is that while the word itself is positive the problem is that the people using it can use it with a negative intent. This is an old politicians trick.
If a British politician described nurses as resilient what I would instantly suspect is that they are really saying "we don't need to reward them or help them, they can manage without pay or resources."
If he described the whole British people as resilient I would understand that he was about to do something that will certainly disadvantage all but the very rich.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: BobHale,

Amen, Bob.

Good point, Bob.

quote:

...my first thought is that while the word itself is positive the problem is that the people using it can use it with a negative intent.

It's just that resilience (at least lately) seems to be turning into a negative word.

Well, you pushed my button, Kalleh! “Resilience” has peppered the sales puffery of ed-consultants pushing “Social and Emotional Learning” [SEL] programs into public schools for 10-15 yrs. Angela Duckworth kicked perseverence into high gear with her book “Grit” (2016). The emphasis currently in SEL programs is more on “empathy” and “inclusion” since the Floyd killing, but the other trend is still in there. Ever since NCLB & its sequels, all the ed-industry has to do is come up with some quality they can convince state DoEds will ‘narrow the achievement gap,’ grease the right palms, then deliver a package of stds/ curriculum/ aligned assessments.

You are all correct IMHO that this sort of thing is a p-poor substitute for improving the lot of those requiring all that ‘grit’ just to get by.

bethree5, I'm SOOO glad to see you're still with us!
It does seem that all the wrong people have all the wrong solutions to "education." Just let teashers TEACH, politics be damned!

How about a limerick for Orem? Pretty please!

Just come across a use of "resilient" in this Bloomberg article.

It is staggering in its denial of reality. I can't speak for the US but in the Uk the poverty situation is becoming extreme. Many families are now forced to choose between heating their home in winter or having food to eat. The rise in charitable organisations handing out free food at food banks has been staggering and there are stories, admittedly anecdotal, of people refusing to accept potatoes and other root vegetables at food banks because they don't have enough money to pay for the gas to cook them.

The article's title says all that you need to know about the mindset of the author. The salary it considers a threshold for problems is more than ten times the average Uk salary.

Anyway the use of resilience comes in the final paragraph where it has already explained that poverty is good for you because it increases your flexibility which is good for the "plasticity of your brain".

Here is the sentence in question...

" There's an advantage to mixing up what you consume to cope with unusual price spikes: You become more resilient as you create a locus of control and interrogate your habits."

Whatever that means.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: BobHale,

Oh yes, the most horrible bit of the article is the suggestion that if your pet is sick you can save money by letting it die. What a delightful person the author must be. Surprised she didn't suggest that if you have two children selling one of them for spare parts would bring in a handy little cash bonus.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: BobHale,

Bloomberg has never been a favorite of mine.