Griffin Dugan

Jake Cooper
HONORS 230C
Research Report: Mindset in the Workplace
Intro
The contrast between growth and fixed mindset has been studied extensively, particularly
in relation to students and learning. In essence, a growth or incremental mindset is the belief that
abilities and skills can be cultivated and enhanced through hard work. People with a growth
mindset choose to focus on individual progress from their starting point. In contrast, a fixed or
entity mindset holds that skill is relatively stable over time, and some people are inherently better
at some things than others. People with a fixed mindset compare their own abilities with others,
and see the gaps between peoples’ abilities as steady and unchangeable. Growth mindset has
been associated with better test scores and GPAs in students, as a growth mindset emphasizes the
importance of continued practice and hard work, which in turn leads to better performance.
This report will focus on the divide between people with fixed and growth mindsets
outside of an academic context, and instead in a professional one. Mindset needs to be analyzed
in the work environment in order to maximize employee efficiency and promote effective
managers and supervisors. If we can understand how growth mindset might contribute to
workplace performance, evaluations, and attitudes towards failure and negative feedback, we can
synthesize what factors define a good employee or boss. More importantly, interventions can be
crafted to address gaps in mindset performance in order to maximize all of the above measures.
To start, the report will cover ways in which employee mindset impacts workplace performance,
and then follow-up with the ways in which manager mindset does the same. It will end with a
discussion on what still needs to be researched, and then it will summarize the main message of
the current research findings.
What’s Known
On a broad level, it’s important to recognize how growth and fixed mindsets impact
attitudes towards learning, failure, and creativity, as these traits go hand-in-hand with workplace
performance. In a study by Lee et al. (2012), researchers looked at “serious games” as a way to
model attitudes and learning associated with mindset. Participants played a game designed to
teach them about United States constitutional amendments, where they played as a law firm
owner matching cases to different lawyers. Success in the game meant correctly matching a
client to the correct expert lawyer, while failure meant to make a mismatch. Participants were
surveyed for either a fixed or growth mindset before playing. Upon data analysis, researchers
found that those participants with a growth mindset towards gaming performed better in the
game, did not show a decline in attention after a failure, read more feedback after a failure, and
displayed more challenge-seeking behavior than participants with a fixed mindset (Lee et al.
2012). This all suggests that a growth mindset lends itself to better learning and attitudes
towards failure, both of which are important to have in an occupational setting.
An additional study done by Hass et al. (2018) looked at how mindset impacts creativity
and creative problem solving. Participants in this study were surveyed for mindset and creative
self-efficacy, then asked to complete tasks involving divergent thinking and creative problem
solving. The results of the study found that those with a fixed mindset towards creativity (i.e.
thinking “some people are just inherently more creative than others”) led to a decreased
performance in creative problem solving, regardless of how well the participant rated themselves
as creative. While growth mindset was highly correlated with creative self-efficacy, the data
showed no relationship between having a growth mindset and being better at creative problem
solving (Hass et al. 2018). The workplace often asks for innovative solutions to complex
problems, and so having an employee with a fixed mindset would hinder their ability to
contribute to creative problem solving. These two studies broadly suggest that fixed mindset is
associated with less learning, a negative attitude towards failure, and a decrease in creative
problem solving abilities. Furthermore, while growth mindset does do better with learning and
failure, it is not perfect, as it shows no impact on creative problem solving. That being said,
growth mindset is certainly not harmful in these aspects.
Understanding how mindset impacts broad attitudes towards learning, feedback, and
failure helps to inform how mindset works in an occupational environment. In research done by
Zingoni & Corey (2017), researchers asked 96 medical sales employees along with their
managers to fill out surveys related to mindset, performance, and the relationship between the
employee and the manager. Results showed that employees with a growth mindset tended to
have higher job performance as rated by their manager. Upon analysis, this relationship was
strengthened when managers had a very strong learning goal orientation (i.e. they believed that
an important part of sales was learning from experience). This learning goal orientation
correlated with higher quality relationships reported between the employee and their manager,
which positively related to job performance ratings (Zingoni & Corey 2017). An improved
relationship between employees and their managers contributes to job satisfaction and
performance, and having a growth mindset makes it easier for this relationship to exist. Mindset
also has an impact on how employees receive feedback from their superiors. Zingoni (2017)
looks at bank employees and the impact of their mindset on how they receive various forms of
feedback. Findings from the study suggest that employees with a growth mindset are more likely
to want to improve after receiving negative feedback, especially when it comes from a highly
credible source. Furthermore, while employees with a growth mindset are unaffected by whether
the feedback given is relative (how well they performed compared to others) or absolute (how
well they performed in reference to an objective standard), those with a fixed mindset are far
more likely to improve when they are given relative feedback (Zingoni 2017). In conjunction
with Zingoni & Corey (2017) and Lee et al. (2012), it can be inferred that growth mindset
broadly leads to a more constructive view of feedback, especially when it comes from a highly-
trusted and credible manager. Employees with a growth mindset tend to want to improve
always, while those with a fixed mindset improve when they focus on their performance relative
to others. If feedback can be tailored to an employee’s mindset, a supervisor can maximize
improvement with little extra effort.
Even in terms of workplace belonging, mindset has a role to play. A recent study by
Rattan & Dweck (2018) looked at women and racial/ethnic minority undergraduates and
measured their mindsets. Afterwards, participants were presented with a scenario of workplace
prejudice and asked how they would respond, and then were presented with a follow-up scenario
where the biased individual either continued or halted their prejudice. Across the studies,
women/minorities with growth mindsets who confronted the initial bias had higher expectations
of the perpetrator later on. Additionally, those with higher subsequent expectations also reported
a greater sense of workplace belonging, better ratings of the relationship with the perpetrator
later on, and greater workplace satisfaction (Rattan & Dweck 2018). This finding is incredibly
important for employers and employees who prioritize diversity and inclusivity. This study
suggests that by holding a growth mindset, employees are able to confront bias and negate the
effects of a biased comment, and will be happier in the workplace. As an extension of that
workplace satisfaction, employees should display better job performance. Therefore, it is
important for employers to create a company atmosphere that is intolerant of prejudice and safe
for peaceful confrontation, but still accepting that people can learn and change their ways.
In line with these studies, other research has been conducted to specifically focus on the
role of employer mindset on the workplace. A study done in California by Yan, Bligh & Kohles
(2014) examined how different leadership styles impact attitudes towards failure in relation to
follower mindset. Researchers surveyed undergraduate and graduate students from both
employer and employee backgrounds. The data showed that leadership styles associated with
negligence and indifference inhibit employees from learning from errors. Most importantly for
this report, the results found that followers with fixed mindsets consistently reported being less
likely to learn from errors, regardless of leadership style (Yan, Bligh & Kohles 2014). This
would suggest that similar to the Zingoni & Corey (2017) study, how leaders treat workplace
errors directly impacts the amount of learning that can come from employee failure. However,
even if an employer takes a very positive stance on error-learning, mindset still plays a
significant role in actual error-learning. Other than leadership, another important characteristic
of a manager is how they perceive employee growth and stagnation. Heslin & VandeWalle
(2008) chose to look at how manager mindset impacts perception of employee performance by
giving managers hypothetical “before/poor” and “after/good” evaluations. They found that
managers with fixed mindsets consistently underestimated positive changes made in employee
performance, and were less likely to give specific feedback for improvement. However, the
researchers also had fixed-mindset managers go through a growth-mindset intervention, and
found that this intervention allowed managers to provide more accurate evaluations and more
constructive feedback (Heslin & VandeWalle 2008). In line with Rattan & Dweck (2018), this
finding suggests that growth mindset leads to higher expectations of employee
performance/improvement, and allows for the opportunity for further growth through more
constructive feedback.
What’s Unknown
With all the positive support for growth mindset, it seems like it should always be
advantageous to have one. One area of research that requires more work, however, is the issue
of whether or not too much of a growth mindset can be harmful. Logically, it follows that
holding a growth mindset about something unchangeable could lead to wasted effort and despair,
but so far no scientific study has looked at this issue. In that same vein, research should continue
to be done on how a fixed mindset might lend itself to certain scenarios more so than a growth
mindset. From the Rattan & Dweck (2017) study, it would be interesting to explore the effects
of mindset on non-minority people confronting workplace bias. This would most likely be a
rarer occurrence (as the prejudice would not be directly impacting the individual), but it is
unknown if the confronter would still have higher expectations of the perpetrator and an
increased sense of workplace satisfaction. This research would help inform how employers
“incentivize” confrontation of bias. Finally, it is unclear how various life experiences might
impact an individual’s mindset. Research should be done to examine the factors of why one
demographic may be more likely to hold a certain mindset, such as number of early negative life
experiences, pre-natal environment, or mindset of role models. Understand the various factors
that contribute to mindset would allow for the development of better interventions designed to
foster a growth mindset.
Conclusion
Across all the studies discussed, it is clear that fixed mindset is hurtful most of the time to
job performance, attitudes towards learning and failure, and creative problem solving. We can
infer from these studies that in general, having a growth mindset lends itself to better workplace
performance, belonging, and satisfaction. Believing that traits and skills can be developed
through persistence and practice allows people to learn from mistakes and feedback, and
eventually improve. Going in to a job, an employee would find it beneficial to try to adopt a
growth mindset about the work they are doing, as that should lead to improved performance.
Further, employers should make an effort to adopt a growth mindset regarding their employees,
as this will allow for better manager-employee relationships, a better work environment, and
higher job performance. In any case, it would seem to be advantageous for anyone to focus on
self-improvement in isolation, as opposed to improvement in relation to others.
Reflection
I chose to look into mindset for a couple of reasons. Firstly, I find it fascinating that our
inherent beliefs about our own as well as others’ capabilities influence so much, ranging from
attitudes towards learning and failure to workplace performance. Secondly, I chose to research
this because, of the topics we learned about in class, it seemed like one of the topics we covered
the least, or where there was the most room for exploration. Considering the scope of the class,
we understandably focused on how mindset impacts GPA, but I was curious about the other
implications of mindset outside of just getting better grades. In searching through the literature,
it became clear that one other environment mindset was studied in was in the workplace. In
addition to there being undiscussed content relating to this topic, it also seemed like one of the
more malleable ones we discussed. By that I mean that changing mindset is “just” a matter of
shifting perspective from focusing on others to focusing on your self-improvement. In
comparison, some of the other factors we talked about in class were how different demographics
and identities performed, which are not exactly changeable. Changing mindset is obviously
easier said than done, but I believe a growth mindset is something anyone can adopt. I guess that
means I have a growth mindset about mindset!
One of the most surprising results I found in the research was in the recent Rattan &
Dweck (2018) study. The initial finding that women/minorities who confronted the bias with a
growth mindset had higher subsequent expectations was not in itself surprising, as it follows that
a growth mindset would lead to the belief that people can change and grow morally. However,
the very format of the experiment was just fascinating to me. For example, the researchers use
the growth vs. fixed mindset spectrum and apply it to how people feel about others, when most
studies focus mindset on how the person feels about their own capabilities. More than that, I was
surprised by the result that people with heightened expectations of the biased perpetrator
reported a higher sense of workplace belonging and satisfaction. To me, I associate high
expectations with a worse sense of disappointment when those expectations don’t come true.
Even though it was undergraduates that were tested and this was a hypothetical situation, I would
have guessed that after confronting the bias they might feel more awkward in the workplace, and
thus a decreased sense of belonging and satisfaction. Just the fact that they are working in a
place where this kind of prejudice occurs would indicate to me a less positive attitude about the
work environment. I find it encouraging that people who would (hypothetically) stand up to
prejudice feel like they are making their workplace a better place to be. This is why I believe it’s
important for employers to create a work environment that allows for learning and constructive
dialogue between groups.
The findings from the Yan, Bligh & Kohles (2014) study validate my experience with
leaders. In particular, when I have a very aloof teacher who doesn’t really care about the class or
the students enough to give meaningful feedback, I am less inclined to try to learn from the work
I’m doing incorrectly. For example, I had a human rights professor my freshman year that
refused to put anything on our papers other than his final grade. I would try to talk to him about
the reasons I got marked off and how I could do better, but he just stated that he “didn’t like
reading parts of it”. This meaningless and ambivalent feedback did not encourage me to try and
work harder on my next paper, but instead I just gave up on improving to meet his unknown
standards. Regardless of my mindset about human rights, the leadership that the professor
showed me discouraged me from learning from my errors. Understanding now from the data
that negligent leadership actually does hinder error-learning helps me to feel that I was valid in
feeling discouraged in that class. Similarly, when I have had teachers who are very invested in
my performance and give a lot of personalized feedback, I find myself wanting to learn from my
mistakes and live up to their expectations. One example of this kind of leadership came from my
COM 200 graduate TA, who rather than just reading my reflections and giving me 100% on all
of them took the time to critique the way I presented information. This led me to work harder on
subsequent reflections, which I believe helped foster my writing ability.
Having read so much about fixed and growth mindset, it is clearer to me now that
growing up, I had much more of a fixed mindset about pretty much everything. If I wasn’t
immediately good at something, I would give up and say it wasn’t meant for me. As Hass et al.
(2018) summarized, as a result of my fixed mindset I really was not good at solving problems
creatively, and I was only able to spew out what I had memorized. Everyone in my family knew
me as “Mr. Literal”, because if it wasn’t explicitly mentioned I couldn’t come to that conclusion.
In addition, as Zingoni (2017) found, I was more favorable towards feedback that reflected how I
was doing in relation to other students rather than by objective measures; if I got a 95% on a test,
it only meant something to me if everyone else got a 94% or below. Finally, the Lee et al. (2012)
study resonated with me, because I used to be unable to really deal with failure or negative
feedback. In particular, I always remember the one time I went bowling with my brother, and he
kept trying to give me pointers on how to do better. This infuriated me at the time, and I ended
up just giving up on bowling when my turn came around. As a result of my fixed mindset, I did
worse at bowling than I could have done, and refused to get feedback on how to improve.
Looking back, it is clear to me how my mindset really impacted my initial attitudes towards
learning and failure. I find that now that I am trying to transition into more of a growth mindset,
I approach my problems with more flexibility/creativity, I am working on focusing on my own
performance regardless of others, and I try to take people’s suggestions as helpful rather than
insulting.
I think that one population that needs to be better informed on the differences between
fixed and growth mindset is parents. In particular, my mom instilled in me a fixed mindset from
a young age. While not everything she taught me had to do with a fixed mindset, I know she
taught me to always compare my accomplishments to other people in my grade/class. When I
got to middle school, I found this constant state of comparing myself to others was very toxic,
even though my mom meant for it to be motivating for me. I think other parents are under the
similar illusion that their kids need to be prodigies that can be bragged about in PTA meetings.
It would be much heathier for the child and result in better performance if parents tried harder to
teach their kids that they should focus on their own improvement, and help them understand that
hard work is needed to become good at anything.
As the findings in Heslin & VandeWalle (2008) show, it would also be advantageous for
leaders/managers/teachers to be taught about growth mindsets in reference to their followers.
Doing so allows them to more accurately gauge improvement and give more meaningful
feedback. A fixed mindset in a leader would lead to wasted potential in the employees, and a
misuse of resources in supporting the staff. If leaders were taught more about the benefits of
having a growth mindset, they would see increased performance from their followers along with
better employee-employer relationships and a more comfortable workplace environment.
Lastly, I think all of the studies’ results indicate that recent graduates entering the
workforce would benefit from learning about why a growth mindset is helpful. Traditional
conversations surrounding mindset revolve around academics, and so graduates might have the
tendency to think that once they graduate, mindset no longer has an impact on their performance.
On the contrary, the effects of mindset actually continue to impact performance beyond the
context of tests and grades. Graduates need to understand this so they can have a better
appreciation for how their mindsets will carry into the workforce, and so those with fixed
mindsets can try to emphasize more their potential for learning and growth.
 References
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thinking: An exploration of predictive effects using Bayes factor analyses. Psychology of
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Heslin, P. A., & VandeWalle, D. (2008). Managers’ implicit assumptions about
personnel. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 17(3), 219–223.
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8721.2008.00578.x
Lee, Y.-H., Heeter, C., Magerko, B., & Medler, B. (2012). Gaming mindsets: Implicit theories in
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Rattan, A., & Dweck, C. S. (2018). What happens after prejudice is confronted in the workplace?
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