Which of the following describes 'learned helplessness'?

Learned helplessness refers to a psychological condition where individuals perceive that they have little to no control over the events in their lives, often after experiencing repeated failures or adversity, leading them to believe that their actions do not significantly influence outcomes. This lack of perceived control can culminate in a defeatist attitude, where individuals become passive and stop trying to change their situation, thinking that effort is futile.

The essence of learned helplessness lies in the perception that external circumstances dictate life experiences, reinforcing a belief that one's actions are ineffective. This aligns directly with the choice that describes the perception that life happens without intervention, as it captures the crux of learned helplessness — the feeling that efforts to change or intervene are pointless due to past experiences of failure.

In contrast, the other options describe more positive attributes associated with agency, control, and resilience, which are the antitheses of learned helplessness. These include having a sense of control, the ability to generate change, and adopting a mentality of resilience and growth, which are all conceptually linked to empowerment rather than the sense of passivity epitomized by learned helplessness.