Growth Mindset

What is a growth mindset?

A growth mindset is a belief that an ability can develop, rather than being wholly fixed. Associated with psychologist Carol Dweck, the concept is usually contrasted with a fixed mindset: the belief that the ability is largely unchangeable. In education, growth-mindset interventions commonly try to change students’ beliefs about whether intellectual ability can improve. Holding a belief and receiving an intervention intended to change that belief are different research questions.

Growth Mindset vs. Fixed Mindset

“I cannot do this yet, but I can improve” expresses a growth mindset. “I am simply not capable of this” expresses a fixed view of that ability. These are beliefs about development. They do not tell us how much improvement is possible, what support is needed, or whether a brief message will change performance.

What the Evidence Shows

Yeager and colleagues (2019) tested a brief intervention in a large US school study. The intervention improved grades among lower-achieving students and increased overall enrollment in advanced mathematics. Effects were small and depended on student and school context; the results did not show that every student benefits equally.

Two Psychological Bulletin reviews reached different conclusions about the size and reliability of the effects. Macnamara and Burgoyne (2023) found very small overall achievement effects and no reliable benefit in their highest-quality subset. Burnette and colleagues (2023) found evidence that effects varied, with more favorable results in some targeted groups and well-implemented interventions.

Practical Limits

Being able to learn is one thing. Showing that a mindset intervention produces a worthwhile improvement is another. The small and disputed effects are a reason to be cautious about turning this idea into a general behavior-change prescription.

The evidence does not justify telling students that effort alone ensures achievement or that disappointing results show the wrong mindset. Teaching quality, resources, prior knowledge, opportunities, and the intervention’s design also matter. A growth-mindset exercise should be evaluated for the intended population and outcome rather than treated as a universal route to success.