Growth Mindset Introduction: What it is, How it Works, and Why it Matters:

The concept of “mindset” has gained increasing attention since Stanford University psychologist Carol Dweck introduced it in her 2007 book Mindset: The New Psychology of Success.

Those with a “fixed” mindset believe that people’s intelligence and abilities are static and outside their control—the widely accepted theory of cognitive development through the 1960s. In contrast, those with a “growth mindset” know that intelligence is dynamic. As neuroscience has now decisively shown, the brain does change based on one’s experiences and efforts.

Regardless of the research, all of us develop beliefs about our own intelligence, beginning in childhood. Some children worry that they don’t have enough. Others grow up thinking that they can do anything if they just work hard at it.

These beliefs make a big difference in how children do in school, research shows. Even students who consider themselves “gifted” often avoid challenge, for fear they might lose status if they fail. But when we teach youth that intelligence is malleable, they more readily take on challenges, persist through difficulties, and experience intellectual growth. (Blackwell, Trzesniewski, & Dweck, 2007)