Grit in College Students: Associations with Achievement and Parental Influences

Grit in College Students: Associations with Achievement and Parental Influences Katelyn R. Black The primary goal of this study was to investigate the relationship of Duckworth and colleagues’ (2007) construct of ‘grit’ with academic achievement, parent socialization behaviors and beliefs, and previously established academic risk factors (e.g., low income, level of parent education). A total of 97 student-parent dyads completed online questionnaires, providing grit scores, attachment scores, the parents’ grit socialization habits, and demographic information. Pearson’s correlations revealed associations between student grit, GPA, and parents’ reports of grit socialization. Multiple linear regressions revealed that grit uniquely predicted GPA above and beyond parent income. In addition, grit did moderate the relation between attachment and GPA. These findings provide insight into how grit may be utilized as a protective factor in academia and socialized in the home environment. 3 PARENTAL INFLUENCES OF GRIT TABLE OF CONTENTS Page TITLE . 1 ABSTRACT.2 TABLE OF CONTENTS.3 LIST OF TABLES.4 LIST OF FIGURES.5 INTRODUCTION.6 METHOD.20 PROCEDURE.22 ANALYSES AND RESULTS.25 DISCUSSION.29 LIMITATIONS AND FUTURE DIRECTIONS.34 REFERENCES.37 TABLES.48 FIGURES.53 APPENDIX A, DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION STUDENT PARTICIPANT.56 APPENDIX B, DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION PARENT PARTICIPANT.57 APPENDIX C, SHORT GRIT SCALE.58 APPENDIX D, SHORT GRIT SCALE MODERATED PARENT SOCIALIZATION.59 APPENDIX E, EXPERIENCES IN CLOSE RELATIONSHIPS SCALE . 61 4 PARENTAL INFLUENCES OF GRIT LIST OF TABLES Table 1 . 48 Demographic Characteristics of Student and Parent Participants Table 2 . 49 Correlations Table 3 . 50 Regressions for Grit and Attachment Table 4 . 51 Regressions for Grit and Parent Education Table 5 . 52 Regressions for Grit and Household Income 5 PARENTAL INFLUENCES OF GRIT LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1 . 53 Associations between Spring GPA and attachment security score by reported grit score interaction graph. Figure 2 . 54 Associations between Spring GPA and parent’s highest level of education by reported grit score interaction graph. Figure 3 . 55 Associations between Spring GPA and the reported family income by reported grit score interaction graph. 6 PARENTAL INFLUENCES OF GRIT Grit in College Students: Associations with Academic Achievement and Parental Influences As researchers work to pinpoint positive learning attributes as well as those which may be detrimental to learning, new terminology and new concepts emerge for both protective and risk factors. Protective factors within the home environment that help to moderate the negative influence of other environmental and biological influences on academic outcomes have been extensively studied. Some of the frequently researched constructs include intrinsic motivation and goal orientation (i.e., an individual’s focus of actions and attention on a specific goal with the purpose of completing said goal; Jimerson, Campos & Greif, 2003). Goal orientation is largely related to intrinsic motivation, as one must not only set goals, but be intrinsically motivated to complete them as well. Although large body of research suggests goal orientation and intrinsic motivation may promote individuals’ academic achievement (Ames & Archer, 1986; Dweck, 1986; Eccles & Wigfield, 2002; Elliot & Harackiewicz, 1994; Pintrich, 2000), it is unclear whether these factors remain influential in the face of adversity or lack of progress. Grit is a protective factor similar to both of the previously mentioned positive intrinsic variables, yet is distinct. Grit is defined as an ability to overcome any level of academic abilities and skills to succeed with determination and focus even through failure (Duckworth, Peterson, Matthews & Kelley, 2007). Duckworth and colleagues have worked to differentiate grit from other related concepts such as conscientiousness, hardiness, and intelligence. In a series of studies, Duckworth and colleagues (2007) conducted extensive research comparing factors such as intelligence, age, and personality to measured levels of grit among various adult respondents to develop the GRIT-O scale. The samples included 1545 adults aged 25 and older reporting online, 139 Ivy League undergraduates with SAT scores averaging at 7 PARENTAL INFLUENCES OF GRIT 1415, and 1218 incoming undergraduate cadets at West Point military school prior to a rigorous summer orientation training procedure. These samples varied drastically in an attempt to validate the measure across participants with different goals and different grit orientations. Online participants were individuals over the age of 25 who visited www.gritstudy. com between April 2006 and September 2006 and completed the assessment measure. It was found that grit, when controlled for education level, does increase with age, suggesting that orientation toward grit behaviors may increase with age as well. In the sample of undergraduates at an ivy-league university, undergraduates (N = 139) reported their cumulative GPA, SAT scores, and completed the grit measure online. It was found that students with higher grit had higher reports of cumulative GPA (r = .25, p < .01), even when reported SAT scores, which were used as a measure of general mental ability, were held constant (r = .34, p < .01). Similar results were seen for the West Point military cadets when grit was compared to the Whole Candidate score (a combination of high school rank, SAT scores, participation in extracurricular activities, and a physical exercise evaluation) used by West Point. Results indicated that the grit score predicted the retention of cadets after the initial summer training more so than the Whole Candidate Score (Duckworth et. al., 2007). These findings support the current study’s hypothesis that GPA will be associated with students’ overall grit score. In addition to predicting grades and retention, other research suggests that those who report higher levels of grit are more apt to employ more rigorous and solitary academic habits. One study assessed study habits and overall grit scores for 190 children competing in a national spelling bee prior to the competition. Spelling bee participants self-reported their study behaviors (e.g., social vs. deliberate practice) and completed the Short GRIT scale to assess overall levels of grit. Children who performed better in the spelling bee reported higher levels of solitary, 8 PARENTAL INFLUENCES OF GRIT deliberate practice, and this habit of deliberate practice increased with spelling bee experience. Grittier spellers performed better overall and reported longer periods of self-directed study behaviors compared to those who performed worse and reported lower grit scores (Duckworth, Kirby, Tsukayama, Berstein & Ericsson, 2011; Duckworth & Quinn, 2009). Other research supports the link between grit and work style in that students with higher grit score were less likely to become distracted and deviate from work or work-directed behavior even when opportunities for procrastination presented themselves (Pierro, Giacomantonio, Pica, Kruglanski & Higgins, 2011). These findings support the major premise behind grit: those students or learners who are “grittier” do not necessarily have higher IQs, but rather have higher intrinsic motivation to work above and beyond that which may be preferred or more enjoyable. Because grit is largely a new concept, many associations between grit and other factors have yet to be explored. The primary goals of the current study are to investigate the link between grit on academic achievement, examine if grit serves as a protective factor for those with certain familial risks (e.g. insecure attachment and lower parental education), and to i