Date of Award

8-2024

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

School

Leadership and Advanced Nursing Practice

Committee Chair

Dr. Elizabeth Tinnon

Committee Chair School

Professional Nursing Practice

Committee Member 2

Dr. LaWanda Baskin

Committee Member 2 School

Leadership and Advanced Nursing Practice

Committee Member 3

Dr. Lachel Story

Committee Member 3 School

Leadership and Advanced Nursing Practice

Committee Member 4

Dr. Hwanseok Choi

Committee Member 4 School

Health Professions

Committee Member 5

Dr. Debra Copeland

Abstract

The study aimed to evaluate how the noncognitive variables of grit and mindset could impact the academic success of baccalaureate nursing students. With the present and growing shortage of nurses, attrition within nursing programs is cause for concern. Attrition is a multifaceted problem; however, academic failure is one contributing factor. While cognitive factors, such as the standardized aptitude test (SAT), pre-nursing science GPA, pre-nursing GPA, and standardized entrance exams (Al-Alawi et al., 2020; Chisholm-Burns et al., 2021), have traditionally been used for admission criteria, increasing evidence suggests that noncognitive factors, like grit and mindset, play a crucial role in academic success (Barbouta et al., 2020; Kannangara et al., 2018; Karlen et al., 2019). This study addressed a gap in the literature as research on mindset and grit in nursing academia is scarce.

This quantitative cross-sectional descriptive correlation study investigated the relationship between grit, mindset, and academic success (GPA and class average) among baccalaureate nursing students at a public university in the southern United States. The study was grounded in the implicit theories of intelligence or mindset theory by Carol Dweck (Dweck et al., 1995). The study took a postpositivist approach, emphasizing the importance of empirical evidence. A convenience sample of 111 baccalaureate nursing students completed an online survey between weeks eight and 10 of the Spring 2024 semester, using a survey method through Qualtrics®. This study is significant as it evaluated the relationship between mindset and grit and their impact on academic success among baccalaureate students, which has not been evaluated in this population.

The results of the study revealed a significant positive correlation between grit and mindset, with mindset particularly associated with the perseverance of effort aspect of grit (rho = 0.23, p = .015). However, neither grit nor mindset significantly correlated with academic success, as measured by previous semesters' GPA and midterm class averages. Interestingly, no significant differences in grit and mindset levels were found based on years of study. Logistic regression models identified age and grit as the only two variables closely associated with midterm class averages, although no significant relationship was found. While age was a potential predictor of GPA, no significance was found. These findings suggest that while noncognitive factors may not directly influence academic success, they still play a role in nursing students' academic journey and can potentially improve retention.

The findings suggest that while grit and mindset are related constructs, their impact on academic performance in this nursing student population was limited. Further research is needed to explain the role of noncognitive factors in nursing education and their potential use in admission criteria, identify at-risk students, and develop interventions to help cultivate essential attributes and nursing student success to combat the nursing shortage.

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