Growing Grit to Produce Doctoral Persistence

• In Event: Moscone Center North Roundtable Session 3
  In Roundtable Session: Human Agency, Identity, and Persistence in Graduate Education

Abstract

The purpose of this systematic grounded theory study was to generate a model explaining how grit and growth mindset develop and influence doctoral persistence. The theoretical framework included Tinto’s (1975) student integration theory, Duckworth’s (2016) theory of grit, and Dweck’s (2016) implicit theories. Data from interviews, journals, the Short Grit Scale (Duckworth, 2016), and Dweck’s (2016) Mindset Instrument from 12 recent graduates were analyzed using systematic coding consistent with grounded theory research design (Corbin & Strauss, 2015). The central research question was, “How do grit and a growth mindset develop and influence doctoral persistence?” The conceptualization of the Grit Growth Model was grounded in the identified themes, illustrating factors which develop these characteristics, and how these traits influence doctoral persistence.

Authors

• Melanie Hudson, Liberty University

• Lucinda S. Spaulding, University of Lynchburg