Some ideas seem so accessible and “right” that we accept them without much question. They resonate with our assumptions and align with common sense, or at least our common thinking. I don’t know if higher education is more susceptible than other sectors to these kinds of group-think trends, but we know that it happens. Certain buzz words and concepts seem to sweep through the academy: Growth Mindset. Moocs. Emerging Adulthood. They can important and helpful ideas, to be sure, but their stock seems to peak and wane. I have wondered if the same fate awaits “grit,” a term that has flowered quickly and pervasively.
Angela Duckworth, a distinguished professor of psychology at the University of Pennsylvania, is the genius (and she is a MacArthur Genius Fellowship recipient) behind grit. In 2016 her first book, Grit: The Power of Passion and Persistence, was published and it has been a runaway best-seller ever since. Grit has been picked up in the popular press, in business, in labs and in schools. Other thinkers, authors, scholars and decision-makers have picked it up and run with it, too. I’ve read enough reviews and heard “grit” referenced enough that I realized it is now part of our collective zeitgeist – especially in education. I thought it high time for me to read the book, in the original, and find out if the work, the hype and the references made sense and lived up to the billing. It was worth the effort.
Duckworth is a very skilled writer. She turns a good sentence, explains extremely well, and is judicious in her claims and arguments. While Grit is no heavily footnoted, tentatively argued academic monograph – it is written for a popular audience – Duckworth is generous in her sourcing and fairly specific in her assertions. Her claims are grounded in research. Duckworth is open, vulnerable and accessible as a narrator and as a person in the book. It is an entertaining and informative read. The TED talks she’s given have been viewed by millions. She’s a compelling speaker, too.
Grit is about talent and effort working together to develop a skill, and a skill being honed through effort (lots and lots of effort) into success. It’s about sticking to something, about not giving up, and deep resolve. Duckworth takes pains to point out, though, that it is not foolish stubbornness. Folks who show great success and grit share common traits and practices: interest, practice, purpose and hope. They are passionate about what they do and their motivation is usually intrinsic. Most have been able to grow through a mentor or coach. They learn from mistakes and remain positive in their growth, regardless of hurdles or setbacks. They see meaning and value in what they are pursuing. Goals and aims add up, collectively, to real accomplishment. This is not the foolish pursuit of an arbitrary target without meaning or connection. It is about intentionality over time, informed by passion, talent and practice.
It makes sense. Duckworth’s observations, informed by outstanding writing and lots of good illustrations, give all of this a fresh feel supported by scientific rigor. But most of us already knew that most meaningful success comes through hard work, over time, and that it rests on some inherent talent. Furthermore, we are aware that most successful people like and want to do what they are doing. Their passion fuels their practice.
The slipperiness in all this stems from the ways that people may use and/or interpret Duckworth’s ideas, as well as the manner in which illustrations and examples reinforce “grit” as a standalone trait that can be taught. It may be that Grit is problematic because its very accessibility facilitates elisions and elusions of important definitions and distinctions.
For example, Duckworth’s interview with a famous winning NFL coach highlights the team’s commitment to “gritty” players. I would guarantee that all football teams value gritty players. In fact, I would find it hard to believe that anyone who is not gritty has made it to professional football – or any other professional sport. So is Pete Carroll a better coach because he talks about grittiness? Bill Bellichek, who coaches the New England Patriots, has a better winning record and does not talk about grittiness. He doesn’t talk much at all. As an illustration or case study such as this, it is impossible, to interpret grit as a determinative factor in success.
Some schools and educators have decided to teach grit. After all, successful students are gritty. Grit, though, calls for more than not giving up. It requires internal motivation and the ability to see hard work as leading to positive goal attainment over longer periods of time. Therefore, is grit really the best vehicle to instill long-term planning at the individual level? Does “grit” help a student spend more time working on math homework? Or playing the bassoon? Duckworth doesn’t claim so, but those that are reading her book an implementing it might see grit as the key character trait.
At a fundamental level, Duckworth believes that supportive and demanding environments are best for children and those learning. Again, I think that most agree. The challenge is figuring out how supportive and how demanding for each child in each family. Successful children will often reflect back that their environment was, indeed, challenging and supportive. But what does that mean in terms of practice? Grit does not tell us and it is not part of Duckworth’s agenda. Supportive for one family in one environment may not be supportive in another.
There is much more research to be done on grit, particularly as we unpack it and different ways we think about success. Backwards research is helpful, but it will not offer a silver bullet as to how to develop grit. All of us in education need to remember that, too. There is no one answer or idea that will spell success across the board. Instead, we have to forge improvements the gritty way: through hard work, perseverance, connection to the right sort of values, intrinsic motivation, and more hard work.
The course on what it takes to succeed is far from over. More work is needed.
David Potash