Advising for Optimal Academic Striving:

A Growth Mindset ApproachSteven Estes

College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Advising

Amanda DurikDepartment of Psychology

How can we promote a mindset that enables:

• Persistence—even when depressed?• Success across cultures and ability levels?• Resilient confidence?• Willingness to benefit from developmental

courses?

Opportunities to promote academic striving:

Appointments

Orientation

UNIV 101

MAP-Works/OSAS

Engaged Learning

ACCESS

& many more!

Advising Models & Assumptions About Motivation

Prescriptive

“limited largely to producing high

grade, gaining credit for the course, or

obtaining a degree in order to realize a certain level of

income…” Crookston (1994)

Developmental

“…satisfaction in work

accomplishment stemming from a natural striving

toward self-enhancement…”

Crookston (1994)

Intrusive

“Motivation is not the cause, but the result

of intrusive intervention activities.”

Earl (1988)

“Instilling” Motivation*

Open questions

Listen for Desire, Ability, Reason, Need (DARN) statements

Looking back/forward

Exploring goals/values

“Eliciting” Motivation*

“You can do it!”

“I know you have what it takes!”

“Keep at it!”

Selling on benefits of education

Appreciative Advising (Bloom, Hutson, & He 2008): Motivation is “discovered” through open-ended

questions about their “dream” aspirations.

*Examples from Starks (2012)

What if a research based model of motivation could…

• Define effective ways to instill motivation?

• Focus our attempts to elicit motivation?

An Overarching Theoretical ModelDweck (1986, 2006)

Motivation in achievement situations is guided by how learners/athletes/employees

conceptualize their abilities

Mindsets

(Dweck, 1986, 2006)

Fixed Mindset

intelligence is a fixed trait

Growth Mindset

intelligence is a malleable quality that can change and grow

Slide adapted from mindsetworks.com

What Mindsets DoFixed Mindset Students Say

Learning is Most Important

“What is really important to me in my classes is whether I learn

something.”

Effort is positive

“The harder you work at something, the better you’ll be at it.”

Growth Mindset Students Say

Looking Smart is Most Important

“The main thing I want when I do my school work is to show how

good I am at it.”

Effort is negative

“To tell the truth, when I work hard at my school work it makes me feel

like I’m not very smart.”

Slide adapted from mindsetworks.com

What Mindsets Do

Fixed Mindset Students Say

Resilient response to failure

“I would work harder in this class from now on.”

“I would spend more time studying for the tests.”

Growth Mindset Students Say

Helpless response to failure

“I would spend less time on this subject from now on.”

“I would try not to take this subject ever again.”

“I would try to cheat on the next test.”

Slide adapted from mindsetworks.com

What Does the Research Say? Achievement

Correlational Studies:

Univ. of Southern CA students—growth mindset related to increase in confidence after challenge (Robins & Pals, 2002)

University of Hong Kong students—growth mindset related to desire to take optional English course (Dweck, 2006)

University students—for growth-minded chemistry students, more challenge more interest (Dweck, 2006)

University students—for fixed-minded students, higher grades early on more interest (Dweck, 2006)

What Does the Research Say? Emotional Well Being

Correlational Studies:

University students—growth mindset predicted less depression during the spring semester (Dweck, 2006)

NIU freshman—growth mindset about shyness predicted reductions in anxiety 7 months later (Valentiner et al., 2011)

Experimental Test Of Mindset Effects(Blackwell et al., 2007)

Randomly assigned 7th grade students to:

1.Growth mindset condition OR

2.Control condition

Measured math grades pre- and post-intervention

Experimental Test:Math Grades in Junior High School

(Blackwell et al., 2007)

Growth mindset

Control

Experimental Test Of Praise Effects(Mueller & Dweck, 1998)

Students take a test and receive randomly assigned positive feedback:

1.Intelligence praise: “Wow, that’s a really good score. You must be smart at this” OR

2.Effort praise: “Wow, that’s a really good score. You must have tried really hard.” OR

3.Control praise: “Wow, that’s a really good score.

Then, all students take a more difficult test

Effort

Higher confidence

Higher motivation

Higher Performance

Intelligence Praise

Lower confidence

Lower motivation

Lower Performance

After difficult

test

Slide adapted from mindsetworks.com

Test Of Praise Effects:After The Difficult Test

(Mueller & Dweck, 1998)

4.5

5

5.5

6

6.5

Trial 1 Trial 3

Effort PraiseControl PraiseIntelligence Praise

# of

Pro

blem

s So

lved

Slide adapted from mindsetworks.com

Test Of Praise Effects:Performance After Negative Feedback

(Mueller & Dweck, 1998)

Initial test Test after negative feedback

0

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

Intelligence Control Effort

Prop

ortio

n of

Chi

ldre

n

Slide adapted from mindsetworks.com

Test Of Praise Effects: Students Who Lied About Low Scores

(Mueller & Dweck, 1998)

So, how does this apply to advising?

Effort is good

Negative performance feedback helps identify room for improvement

Difficult work leads to learning

Putting it into practice…(role-playing activity)

References

Blackwell, L. S., Trzesniewski, K. H., & Dweck, C. S. (2007). Implicit theories of intelligence predict achievement across an adolescent transition: A longitudinal study and an intervention. Child Development, 78, 246-263.

Bloom, J.L., Hutson, B.L., & He, Y. (2008). The appreciative advising revolution. Urbana-Champaign, IL: Stipes.

Crookston, B. B. (1994). A developmental view of academic advising as teaching. NACADA Journal, 14(2), 5-9.

Dweck, C. (2006-02-28). Mindset: The new psychology of success. Random House, Inc.. Kindle Edition.

Earl, W. R. (1988). Intrusive advising of freshmen in academic difficulty. NACADA Journal, 8 (2), 27-33.

Mueller, C. M., & Dweck, C. (1998). Praise for intelligence can undermine children’s motivation and performance. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 75, 33-52.

Robins, R., & Pals, J. (2002). Implicit self-theories in the academic domain: Implications for goal orientation, attributions, affect, and self-esteem change. Self and Identity, 1, 313– 336.

Starks, S. R. (2012). Enhancing Student Motivation. Retrieved 16 September 2012 from http://distanceadvising.com/2012/05/enhancing-student-motivation/