'You are the Average of the Five People You Spend Time with': A Case Study on Mindset and Social Networks in the Sultanate of Oman

This paper investigates the relationship among students’ mindsets, academic performance, English proficiency, and that of their social networks in the Sultanate of Oman. Two main questions were addressed, namely the relationship among the students’ mindset, their social network’s mindset and their academic performance, and the correlation between the students’ proficiency in English and that of their social networks. Results revealed individual’s mindset significantly influences their academic performance. The mindset within an individual’s social network may also affect their academic achievement. Data also suggested that individual mindset has a more dominant role in the students’ academic performance than their social network. The relationship between participants’ English proficiency and their social network revealed inconclusive findings. Given Oman’s Vision 2040 that places a strong emphasis on knowledge-driven society, this study emphasizes the importance of nurturing a growth-oriented mindset within social networks to achieve national educational objectives.