Growth Mindset Interventions. Intervention Report. Supporting Postsecondary Success Topic Area. NCEE 2022-006

Large numbers of students who enroll in college do not complete a degree. Yet, earning a college degree is one of the primary pathways for economic success and is increasingly required for good jobs and high wages. The way students interpret early academic struggles in college may affect whether or not they remain enrolled. If students attribute their academic challenges to a perceived lack of intelligence or inability to succeed in college, they may be less likely to persist. "Growth Mindset" interventions aim to improve college persistence and academic achievement by encouraging students to view intelligence as a "malleable" characteristic that grows with effort, and to view academic challenges as temporary setbacks that they can overcome. This What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) report, part of the WWC's Supporting Postsecondary Success topic area, explores the effects of "Growth Mindset" interventions on postsecondary students' academic achievement, college enrollment, and progressing in college. The WWC identified 15 studies of "Growth Mindset" interventions. Six of these studies meet WWC standards. The evidence presented in this report is from studies of the impact of Growth Mindset interventions on postsecondary students--including Black, White, Hispanic, first-generation, and Pell grant-eligible students--in both public and private postsecondary settings. [For the Intervention Brief, see ED617275. For the Intervention Report Snapshot, see ED617278.]