The founder of the growth mindset theory is Carol Dweck, a psychologist from Stanford and the author of the famous book “Mindset.” She posed the question: why do people react differently to challenges or difficult tasks? Some try to solve them, while others immediately give up. This question had been studied before her, but it was Carol Dweck who showed that different types of thinking are behind this behavior – growth mindset and fixed mindset.

They differ in several ways, the first of which is the attitude towards one’s own abilities. A growth mindset is a belief that any person can develop in a desired area and successfully learn new things if they put enough effort into it.

However, if a person has a fixed mindset, then, on the contrary, they believe that abilities are given to people once and for all. Everyone is either talented, for example, in mathematics, or not. If you are not given this talent, then it is impossible to achieve heights in this area. This mindset can also affect academic pursuits, leading some to rely on dissertation writing services, which are actually useful in most cases considering the fact that such help can save student’s time greatly.

Students with a fixed mindset and growth mindset

Are people with a fixed mindset lagging behind in their studies and are generally afraid to prove themselves? No, such attitudes are found not only in people who are unsuccessful in something. A fixed mindset can also be found in those who believe that they have talents and those who really achieve in their field.

People with a growth mindset are not afraid to admit that they do not understand something and, therefore, are not embarrassed to ask questions. Such a student will say to the teacher: “I don’t understand this; help me figure it out,” without experiencing any psychological discomfort.

People with a fixed mindset, on the contrary, avoid asking questions. If such a person is convinced that they do not have abilities, then they are afraid to demonstrate their lack of understanding once again. If this is a person with talents in some area – for example, a freshman who won a math competition at school – they do not ask questions so as not to lose their status as smart.

Another interesting aspect is how people with different types of thinking perceive failures. People with a growth mindset, if they make a mistake somewhere, do not worry about it too much because they believe that a mistake can be a resource. If you make a mistake, understand what you did wrong and do it differently next time.

However, for a person with a fixed mindset, any failure is a very frustrating experience, and that is why they try to avoid difficult tasks – so as not to make mistakes. Furthermore, people with a fixed mindset believe that their talents should enable them to achieve their goals easily. Therefore, if they have to put in excessive effort, their talent is called into question. The doubt arises: maybe I have such a hard time because I am not gifted enough. Any situation that requires significant effort and persistence is seen as threatening to high self-esteem.

The main benefit of the growth mindset theory

It is quite useful as a theory that works with attitudes. We are indeed limited in many ways in our ideas about our own capabilities by our family, social, and educational experiences. Throughout life, everyone develops many attitudes that we have no talents in certain areas. For example: “Mathematics is definitely not my thing.”

The problem is that we do not even test these hypotheses! We stop at these conclusions and say: “This is not my thing.” People avoid making efforts in adulthood; they do not want to master new technologies. For example, this is quite difficult for older people. But what will happen if you try and make an effort and do not give up right away?

The growth mindset theory broadens students’ horizons and allows them to discover resources for change, development, and improvement.