April 9: The Power of Ordinary Magic: How Do Children Overcome Adversity?
How can we support children in developing resilience? This session explored researcher Ann Masten’s concept of “ordinary magic,” which explains how resilience grows through everyday experiences shaped by both biology and environment. Participants learned how adaptive skills develop, how resilience is nurtured over time, and why this research matters for supporting children, families, and communities today and into the future.
Presented by: Dr. Ann Masten, Regents Professor Emerita, Institute of Child Development, UMN and author of "Ordinary Magic: Resilience in Development" (2025, Guilford Press).
Part of the OLLI At-the-U Lecture Series.
Key Takeaways
- Definition of Resilience: Dr. Masten defines resilience as the capacity of a dynamic system—whether a child, family, or community—to adapt successfully to challenges that threaten its function, survival, or development.
- "Ordinary Magic": Resilience does not come from extraordinary or rare qualities; rather, it arises from "ordinary magic"—the common but powerful adaptive processes that are part of our human legacy, such as biological and cultural evolution.
- Multi-System Dependency: A child's individual resilience is not isolated; it depends on the resilience of interconnected systems, including their family, school, and community.
- The "Short List" of Protective Factors: Research consistently points to a robust list of factors that foster resilience, including:
- Strong Relationships: Having at least one stable and committed relationship with a supportive caregiver or adult.
- Executive Function Skills: The neurocognitive processes that allow children to direct attention, plan, and follow instructions are critical, malleable, and predictive of future success.
- Effective Schools: Schools serve as safe environments and symbols of normalcy, providing relational support and self-regulation training.
- Internal Strengths: Qualities such as problem-solving skills, self-efficacy, hope, and a sense of purpose.
- Dynamic and Fluctuating Nature: Resilience is not a fixed trait; it changes over time and can fluctuate based on the exhaustion of resources or the recovery of capacity.
- Practical Framework for Action: The science of resilience has shifted professional practices from a pure focus on "risk and problems" to a "strength-focused approach" that aims to build capacity at multiple levels.
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