Why does Martin Seligman say the original theory of learned helplessness was wrong?

Martin Seligman said that for about 40 years researchers believed helplessness was learned and that it harmed people. Neuroscience experiments by Steve Maier over the last 25 years showed the reverse: passivity is the brain's default response, and what is actually learned is agency, the sense of control. That shift is why Seligman now treats agency as a skill that can be taught.

• Seligman says it took 60 years to separate whether helplessness kills or mastery protects.
• His career arc runs from studying giving up to asking how to make people more agentic.

Source: our own transcription of the episode. The full conversation is on Hidden Brain (2026-09-28). Read the whole episode summary →

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