Dweck's Mindset Theory of Learning (AQA GCSE Psychology)

• Having a fixed mindset means not allowing yourself to learn, try, grow, make mistakes and eventually succeed at a task/skill/accomplishment
• Einstein, Jane Austen, Taylor Swift, (Dame) Laura Kenny, Marcus Rashford, Oprah Winfrey, Ed Sheeran: what unites all of these people is not necessarily innate talent (although they are of course the best in their field) but determination to be ‘the best they can be’ - and this would be impossible with a fixed mindset!
• A fixed mindset assumes that you either have ‘it’ (‘it’ being sporting ability, musical talent, creativity etc.) or you don’t i.e. it is a biological assumption, based on genetic inheritance as the key determinant of success in a specific field
• A fixed mindset attitude would include attitudes such as:
  • What’s the point, I wasn’t made for dancing so why even take ballet lessons?
  • It’s a waste of time trying to get me to study Psychology, I’ll never understand it
  • My sister plays the piano well, she doesn’t even have to try but I’m not like her so there’s no point in me even trying
  • Some people are just born to win races but that’s not me
• People with a fixed mindset may only feel good about themselves when they are doing well at a task/skill - when the going gets tough they are likely to give up i.e. they don’t understand that failing is part of succeeding
• A fixed mindset may result in someone being so goal-oriented that they forget to enjoy the journey plus they are likely to blame themselves and feel down about their lack of progress or perceived failures
• In short, a fixed mindset says, ‘I can’t do it’

• Having a growth mindset means that you are open to trying, failing, and trying again until you achieve what you set out to do
• Having a growth mindset means that you are willing to push yourself to keep aiming for improvement
• If you have a growth mindset you may not even care about being the best or improving massively; you enjoy the journey, you relish challenges, and you like working hard - the end goal is not hugely important to you
• A growth mindset means that failing at a task is not the end of the world, it presents a new challenge and opportunities for learning
• Each type of mindset is not set in stone: it is possible to change from a fixed to a growth mindset and it is also possible to have a fixed mindset for some areas of life and a growth mindset for others
• In short, a growth mindset says, ‘I can’t do it yet’

Evaluation of application of Dweck’s mindset theory of learning

Strengths

• The theory has good application: there is anecdotal evidence from sportspeople, musicians, scientists etc. who have gone on record outlining the extent to which early rejections and failures spurred them on to improve and to try harder
• Yeager et al. (2019) found that having only one hour’s instruction in growth mindset improved the Maths grades of low-ability secondary students in the USA

Weaknesses

• The concept of a growth mindset may not be cross-culturally popular: collectivist cultures focus on the group rather than the individual so Dweck’s theory may not be acceptable or appropriate for them
• Some people may simply be unable to adopt a growth mindset due to their mental health e.g. someone with depression may find it impossible to believe that failure is part of success which limits the theory’s validity