Dweck's Mindset Theory

Question 1

Dweck’s theory

Answer 1

・people who have a growth mindset progress more than those with a fixed mindset

Question 2

Dweck’s research

Answer 2

・Dweck’s research found that when children are praised for effort, they choose more challenging tasks, seeing them as opportunities to learn, developing a growth mindset
・those praised for intelligence prefer to do easier tasks where they can be seen to succeed

Question 3

Growth mindset

Answer 3

Improvement is always possible

Question 4

Criticisms of Dweck’s theory

Answer 4

・the theory blames failure on the student – it doesn’t take into account other factors such as bullying or the quality of teaching. This could affect a student’s self-esteem and mental health
・this theory might over-emphasise the importance of nurture - - > maybe nature plays a bigger role in success that Dweck assumes
・aome psychologists say that when students are praised for effort, they assume they are
not doing well, which affects their self-esteem. They say that teachers should avoid praising
・a study of growth mindset interventions in UK schools failed to find any improvement in
English and Maths compared to the control group
・since research that fails to prove the hypothesis tends not to get published, there might be many more studies which disprove Dweck’s mindset theory