Growth, Fixed, and Maybe More?

Known as the belief about the malleability of intelligence, the concept of intelligence mindset has been embraced by the United States education system and abroad. Specifically, some research suggests that growth mindset (i.e., belief that intelligence can be changed) and fixed mindset (i.e., belief that intelligence is stable) differentially relate to achievement outcomes and are influenced by socializers’ beliefs. Other work, however, suggests that these relations are less robust than previously thought. Importantly, a reconceptualization of the construct of intelligence mindset may be warranted. In this study, I developed a novel math intelligence mindset scale for children that included growth, fixed, and items for a new type of mindset called “mixed” mindset. In a sample of 698 grade 3 students and their 59 teachers, I examined the structural validity of the new scale for children and found that math intelligence mindset was represented best when there was a combined growth and mixed mindset factor and a separate fixed mindset factor. In support of the external validity of the scale, I found that each factor of intelligence mindset was strongly related with effort beliefs and perceptions of mistakes in math and moderately related with challenge-seeking behaviors and math achievement. Student fixed intelligence mindset was consistently found to be uniquely related to student math achievement above and beyond other motivational factors. Teacher growth/mixed and fixed/mixed intelligence mindsets were important predictors of student mindsets and teacher growth mindset was important for student math achievement, but only when teacher mindsets were modeled as individual predictors. This study advances our current knowledge of intelligence mindsets by testing a new component of intelligence mindset and adding to the knowledge base about how math intelligence mindset might be conceptualized. Additionally, it can more broadly influence how the educational community might address intelligence mindsets in the classroom.