Predictors for Growth Mindset and Sense of Belonging in College Students

26 Pages Posted: 6 Jun 2017

See all articles by Sara Cook

Sara Cook

Viterbo University - College of Education, Science, and Mathematics

Sloan Komissarov

Western Technical College

Brenda Murray

University of Wisconsin - La Crosse - Department of Economics

James Murray

University of Wisconsin - La Crosse – Department of Economics

Date Written: May 31, 2017

Abstract

Mindset and sense of belonging are important predictors for college student success. Mindset refers to beliefs on how or whether intelligence can grow with time and effort. Belonging refers to students' sense of being respected and supported in their college environment. We measure several dimensions of mindset and belonging and educational and demographic background information for more than 2,000 students at two four-year universities including a public and a private university. We estimate factor analysis models to construct measures for mindset and belonging and we explore predictors for these including educational and demographic characteristics and frequency of instructor feedback to students. We find that formative instructor feedback on writing leads to improvements in mindset, belonging, perseverance, and confidence. We also find that frequent feedback on writing improves students' mindset regarding mathematics. We also find explanatory power from semesters in college, parents' educational attainment, race, and students' chosen fields of study.

Keywords: Mindset, Belonging, Student Writing, Feedback, Regression

JEL Classification: A22

Suggested Citation

Cook, Sara and Komissarov, Sloan and Murray, Brenda and Murray, James, Predictors for Growth Mindset and Sense of Belonging in College Students (May 31, 2017). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2981141 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2981141

Sara Cook

Viterbo University - College of Education, Science, and Mathematics ( email )

La Crosse, WI 54601
United States

Sloan Komissarov

Western Technical College ( email )

400 7th St N
La Crosse, WI 54601
United States

Brenda Murray

University of Wisconsin - La Crosse - Department of Economics ( email )

1725 State Street
413 Wimberly Hall
La Crosse, WI 54601
United States

James Murray (Contact Author)

University of Wisconsin - La Crosse – Department of Economics ( email )

1725 State Street
La Crosse, WI 54601
United States
608-785-5140 (Phone)

HOME PAGE: http://www.murraylax.org

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