Intelligence in Context: A Context-specific Mindset Measure Better Predicts Outcomes for Science and Math...

Area of Science:

• Educational Psychology
• Cognitive Science
• Higher Education Studies

Background:

• Mindset, or beliefs about intelligence malleability, is crucial for student success.
• General mindset measures may overlook context-specific influences on student outcomes.
• The Undergraduate Lay Theories of Abilities (ULTrA) Survey offers a context-specific measure for science and math undergraduates.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the predictive power of a context-specific mindset measure (ULTrA) against a context-general measure.
• To investigate the association of mindset with various undergraduate academic outcomes.
• To determine if a context-specific measure offers unique insights into student success.

Main Methods:

• Surveyed 1537 undergraduates using Dweck's original mindset measure and the ULTrA survey.
• Assessed outcomes including sense of belonging, goal orientation, self-handicapping, evaluative concern, intent to persist in science, and course grades.
• Employed structural equation modeling to analyze relationships between mindset measures and outcomes.

Main Results:

• The ULTrA survey demonstrated stronger and more consistent relationships with student outcomes than the original mindset measure.
• ULTrA uniquely predicted variance in outcomes not accounted for by the general measure.
• Academic outcomes like intent to persist and course grades were significantly linked to ULTrA, but not the general measure.

Conclusions:

• Context-specific mindset measures, like ULTrA, are more effective in capturing relationships with undergraduate academic outcomes.
• The ULTrA survey can identify critical associations with student success that general measures may miss.
• Utilizing context-specific mindset assessments is vital for a comprehensive understanding of student performance in STEM fields.