Growth mindset theory holds that people differ in their implicit beliefs about whether intelligence and ability are fixed traits or qualities that can be developed. Someone with a growth mindset believes ability can be built through effort, strategy and persistence, while someone with a fixed mindset regards ability as an unchangeable trait, and the theory argues this belief shapes how a person responds to setbacks and whether they keep trying at a difficult task. Carol Dweck developed the framework from her research on implicit theories of intelligence and popularized it for a general audience in her 2006 book Mindset: The New Psychology of Success. Later attempts to apply growth mindset training in schools have had mixed results: a 2019 randomized controlled trial by England's Education Endowment Foundation found no significant increase in numeracy or literacy from a growth mindset intervention, and researchers have separately described a false growth mindset, where adults endorse the belief in principle without changing how they actually teach or respond to a learner's struggle. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
Widely applied in schools, but a large 2019 randomized controlled trial found no significant effect on academic outcomes, so the theory's classroom effectiveness, as distinct from the underlying psychological distinction, is genuinely contested.
Facts
Core ClaimBelieving that ability can be developed through effort and strategy, a growth mindset, produces different responses to challenge and failure than believing ability is a fixed trait, and how a learner is praised, for effort and strategy rather than for being innately smart, is held to shape which belief they form. 2 Classification
Education Level FAQs
Does growth mindset training actually raise students' results?
A 2019 Education Endowment Foundation trial found no significant gain in numeracy or literacy.
The evidence is not strong. A larger randomized controlled trial run in 2019 by the Education Endowment Foundation found that growth mindset training produced no significant increase in numeracy or literacy.
Connections
Associated With
Growth mindset research is cited in debates over tracking, with proponents arguing that promoting a growth mindset can raise achievement regardless of a student track placement.
Source Wikipedia
Developed By
Source Wikipedia: Mindset
In Approach
Includes
Open Questions
Source Wikipedia: Mindset
In the Other Atlases
Discusses
Also in Psychology Atlas: which this subject discusses.
Sources
1. Mindset (Wikipedia)
refers to an established set of attitudes of a person or group concerning culture, values, philosophyView the Source 2. Wikipedia: Mindset
Wikimedia FoundationFixed and growth mindsets
In 2019 a larger randomized controlled trial by the Education Endowment Foundation for growth mindset training showed no significant increase in numeracy or literacy.
Core Concept
People with a fixed mindset believe that intelligence is static, and little can be done to improve ability.
References, Dweck 2006 citation
Dweck, C. S. (2006). Mindset: The New Psychology of Success.
- Developed By: Carol Dweck, Developer and Timeline
In Group: Motivation and Goal Theories, Lead
A mindset (also known as mentality especially when considered as biased and closed-minded) refers to an established set of attitudes of a person or group concerning culture, values, philosophy, frame of reference, outlook, or disposition.
View the Source Wikipedia
Wikimedia FoundationAssociated With: Tracking and Streaming, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tracking_(education), growth mindset discussionQuote, Associated With: Tracking and Streaming, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tracking_(education), growth mindset discussion
Dweck implies that teachers who promote a growth mindset could stimulate students to greater academic achievement regardless of tracking.
Open Questions (1 open question)
Does growth mindset training produce meaningful gains in academic achievement at scale?
Carol Dweck's original studies and many smaller trials reported achievement gains from growth mindset interventions, but a 2019 randomized controlled trial run by the Education Endowment Foundation across many schools found no significant increase in numeracy or literacy from the training. Advocates and critics differ on whether the effect is real but small and context dependent, or whether the early results simply do not replicate at scale.
What would resolve this Additional large, independently run randomized controlled trials across varied school settings, with pre registered outcome measures, would show whether the training's effect on achievement holds up outside the original research team's own studies.
Educational psychologyWikipedia: Mindset
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