Abstract
Research has shown that grit facilitates positive psychological outcomes. Yet, almost all of these empirical investigations were carried out in Western societies which raise potential issues with regard to the generalizability of these results in collectivist settings. The present research hopes to address the dearth of studies on grit in non-Western cultures through investigating the psychological effects of grit on educational and well-being outcomes among Filipino high school students. Six hundred six Filipino high school students (n = 606) participated in the current research. Results showed interesting cross-cultural differences. First, the two dimensions of grit – consistency of interest and perseverance of effort – were not significantly correlated. Second, path analysis revealed differential prediction associated with the two dimensions of grit. Only perseverance of effort positively predicted behavioral engagement, emotional engagement, and flourishing. However, both consistency of interest and perseverance of effort negatively predicted behavioral and emotional disengagement. The implications of the findings to existing theory and practice are discussed.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsReferences
Bakker, A. B., & Sanz-Vergel, A. I. (2013). Weekly work engagement and flourishing: The role of hindrance and challenge job demands. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 83, 397–409. doi:10.1016/j.jvb.2013.06.008.
Byrne, B. M. (2010). Structural equation modelling with AMOS: Basic concepts, applications, and programming (2nd ed.). New York: Routledge.
Ching, C. M., Church, A. T., Katigbak, M. S., Reyes, J. A. S., Tanaka-Matsumi, J., Takaoka, S., et al. (2014). The manifestation of traits in everyday behavior and affect: A five-culture study. Journal of Research in Personality, 48, 1–16. doi:10.1016/j.jrp.2013.10.002.
Connell, J. P., & Wellborn, J. G. (1991). Competence, autonomy and relatedness: A motivational analysis of self-system processes. In M. Gunnar & L. A. Sroufe (Eds.), Minnesota symposium on child psychology (Self-processes in development, Vol. 23, pp. 43–77). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Darlington, R. B. (1990). Regression and linear models. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Datu, J. A. D. (2014). Validating the revised self-construal scale in the Philippines. Current Psychology. doi:10.1007/s12144-014-9275-9.
Dekker, S., & Fischer, R. (2008). Cultural differences in academic motivation goals: A meta-analysis across 13 societies. Journal of Educational Research, 102, 99–110.
Diener, E., Wirtz, D., Tov, W., Kim-Prieto, C., Choi, D. W., Oishi, S., et al. (2010). New well-being measures: Short scales to assess flourishing and positive and negative feelings. Social Indicators Research, 97, 143–156. doi:10.1007/s11205-009-9493-y.
Duckworth, A. L., Kirby, T. A., Tsukayama, E., Berstein, H., & Ericsson, K. A. (2010). Deliberate practice spells success: Why grittier competitors triumph at the National Spelling Bee. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 2, 174–181. doi:10.1177/1948550610385872.
Duckworth, A. L., Peterson, C., Matthews, M. D., & Kelly, D. R. (2007). Grit: Perseverance and passion for long-term goals. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 92, 1087–1101.
Duckworth, A. L., & Quinn, P. D. (2009). Development and validation of the Short Grit Scale (Grit-S). Journal of Personality Assessment, 91, 166–174. doi:10.1080/00223890802634290.
Eskreis-Winkler, L., Shulman, E. P., Beal, S. A., & Duckworth, A. L. (2014). The grit effect: Predicting retention in the military, the workplace, school and marriage. Frontiers in Psychology, 5, 36. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00036.
Galla, B. M., Plummer, B. D., White, R., Meketon, D., D’Mello, S. K., & Duckworth, A. L. (2014). The Academic Diligence Task (ADT): Assessing individual differences in effort on tedious but important schoolwork. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 39, 314–325. doi:10.1016/j.cedpsych.2014.08.001.
Grimm, S. D., Church, T. A., Katigbak, M. S., & Reyes, J. A. (1999). Self-described traits, values, and moods associated with individualism and collectivism: Testing I-C theory in an individualistic (U.S.) and a collectivistic (Philippine) culture. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 30, 466–500.
Henrich, J., Heine, S. J., & Norenzayan, A. (2010). Most people are not WEIRD. Nature, 466, 29.
Howe, M. J. A. (1999). Genius explained. New York: Cambridge University Press.
King, R. B., & McInerney, D. M. (2014). Culture’s consequences on student motivation: Capturing cross-cultural universality and variability through personal investment theory. Educational Psychologist, 49(3), 175–198. doi:10.1080/00461520.2014.926813.
Kleiman, E. M., Adams, L. M., Kashdan, T. B., & Riskind, J. H. (2013). Gratitude and grit indirectly reduce risk of suicidal ideations by enhancing meaning in life: Evidence for a mediated moderation model. Journal of Research in Personality, 47, 539–546. doi:10.1016/j.jrp.2013.04.007.
Markus, H., & Kitayama, S. (1991). Culture and the self: Implications for cognition, emotion, and motivation. Psychological Review, 98, 224–253.
Markus, H. R., & Kitayama, S. (1998). The cultural psychology of personality. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 29, 63–87. doi:10.1177/0022022198291004.
Schutte, N. S., & Loi, N. M. (2014). Connections between emotional intelligence and workplace flourishing. Personality and Individual Differences, 66, 134–139. doi:10.1016/j.paid.2014.03.031.
Skinner, E. A., Kindermann, T. A., & Furrer, C. (2009). A motivational perspective on engagement and disaffection: Conceptualization and assessment of children’s behavioral and emotional participation in academic activities in the classroom. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 69, 493–525. doi:10.1177/0013164408323233.
Strayhorn, T. L. (2014). What role does grit play in the academic success of black male collegians at predominantly white institutions? Journal of African American Studies, 18(1), 1–10. doi:10.1007/s12111-012-9243-0.
Terman, L. M., & Oden, M. H. (1947). The gifted child grows up: Twenty-five years’ follow-up of a superior group. Oxford, UK: Stanford University Press.
Vallerand, R. J., Blanchard, C., Mageau, G. A., Koestner, R., Ratelle, C., Leonard, M., et al. (2003). Les passions de l’Aˆ me: On obsessive and harmonious passion. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 85, 756–767.
Von Culin, K., Tsukayama, E., & Duckworth, A. L. (2014). Unpacking grit: Motivational correlates of perseverance and passion for long-term goals. Journal of Positive Psychology. doi:10.1080/17439760.2014.898320.
Xiang, P., Lee, A. M., & Solmon, M. A. (1997). Achievement goals and their correlates among American and Chinese students in physical education: A cross-cultural analysis. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 28, 645–660.
Yu, A. B., & Yang, K. S. (1994). The nature of achievement motivation in collectivist societies. In U. Kim, H. C. Triandis, C. Kagitcibasi, S. C. Choi, & G. Yoon (Eds.), Individualism and collectivism: Theory, method, and applications (pp. 239–250). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2016 Springer Science+Business Media Singapore
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Datu, J.A.D., Valdez, J.P.M., King, R.B. (2016). The Successful Life of Gritty Students: Grit Leads to Optimal Educational and Well-Being Outcomes in a Collectivist Context. In: King, R., Bernardo, A. (eds) The Psychology of Asian Learners. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-287-576-1_31
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-287-576-1_31
Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore
Print ISBN: 978-981-287-575-4
Online ISBN: 978-981-287-576-1
eBook Packages: EducationEducation (R0)