The mindset you have at work may change when you're in a challenging relationship or social interaction.
Many of us have learned about growth mindset as it relates to intelligence and learning.
Research questions start with:
Do you believe intelligence is fixed?
Or do you believe it can grow through learning, effort and experience?
But systematic reviews have found that researchers are studying over 140 different mindset domains.
The domains of intelligence/ learning/ performance is only a fraction of where mindset shows up.
Mindset research shows that our beliefs about whether we can change our:
- emotions
- emotional intelligence
- empathy
- anxiety
- social anxiety
- social intelligence
- Self-regulation
Can influence how we interpret, approach and respond to opportunities to develop those traits, skills and capacities.
(the list is obviously much longer and we’ll go into that in an upcoming article)
There are a few things this shows us…
One is that it’s not so simple to say we have “a growth mindset” or “a fixed mindset.”
We may have a growth mindset in one part of our life and a much more fixed mindset in another.
Someone might believe:
I can become better at my work.
And also believe:
I’m just an anxious person.
They may believe intelligence can grow…
while assuming their emotional reactions are ‘correct’ and just ‘who they are’...
Earlier researchers sometimes called these entity theories and incremental theories.
An entity theory treats something as a fixed part of us.
It says things like: ‘This is what I am.’ ‘This is how I will always respond.’
An incremental theory leaves room for ‘acquirability’.. development..
This (behavior/aspect/pattern) can change.
I can build more capacity (for responding/behaving in new ways) over time.
This distinction matters when it comes to nervous system regulation.
A person can learn breathing practices, mindfulness and somatic tools and ways to help focus their attention.
But if those tools are always meeting a deeply wired prediction that..
“My ___ (anxiety/shyness/anger/relationship skills) are fixed. This is just who I am.”
.. it will often be a lot harder for them to
a) even notice change and
b) believe that small increments (with ups and downs) are evidence of their ability to change and update.
This is why I often say that I find it hard to separate the topic of mindset and self-regulation.
We may believe we can become more regulated in some parts of our lives…
while feeling completely fixed in others.
We might feel flexible and capable at work, and still believe:
I will always shut down when my family talks to me that way.
I can’t help becoming anxious in relationships.
This is simply how I respond to conflict.
I will always lose access to myself around this person.
In those areas, we may be holding more of an entity theory about our nervous system responses.
We experience the pattern as a fixed part of who we are.. Instead of as a response our system learned and repeated in a particular context (from our past).
This is one reason i find it useful to explore the topic of mindset by domain and by situation.
We can reflect for ourselves (and have a conversation with someone we are teaching or supporting)...
- What aspect of your life do you feel like you are really capable of growing and learning?
- Where in life (relationships, family interactions, anxiety, stress, etc.) do you feel like you are always stuck? Where it feels like there’s not much you can ever do to change it.
This is not to be ‘poly ana’ and over cheerlead*..
*It’s important for us to acknowledge the difficulty someone might have to respond in any type of new way.. Some conditions and circumstances truly make some things feel out of reach.
But.. because we are human, and our brain-body architecture does allow for updates..
It can be powerful for us to create invitations to notice:
… that there may be more flexibility and update-ability there than we might have expected.
Wishing you small pieces of evidence that expand what feels possible..
Stefanie
P.S. This is exactly why I created the Mindset Science Teaching Framework.
It takes you beyond the simplified idea of “growth versus fixed” and into the biology of prediction, emotion, discomfort, failure, identity and change.
Inside, I’m breaking down how to:
EXPLAIN IT BETTER: Translate mindset into clear, biologically grounded language, so people understand why change is possible instead of hearing another message about positive thinking.
CREATE DEEPER BUY-IN: Help people understand how the brain interprets effort, stress, mistakes and discomfort.. so they can stay open long enough for learning and change to occur.
TEACH IT SO IT STICKS: Turn mindset science into memorable explanations, visuals and experiences you can use in your content, coaching, classrooms, workshops and leadership.
This week, you can get the complete Mindset Science Teaching Framework for 40% off.
Use code NEUROMINDSET40 at checkout.
This is a limited-time sale. The price goes back up at 11:59 p.m. ET on Sunday.
I can’t wait for you to dig in—and bring these ideas into the rooms you lead.
Research and further reading:
Kyler, E. N., & Moscicki, M. K. (2024). “Measuring many mindsets: A systematic review of growth mindset domains.” Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 18(11)
De Castella, K., Goldin, P., Jazaieri, H., Heimberg, R. G., Dweck, C. S., & Gross, J. J. (2015). Emotion beliefs and cognitive behavioural therapy for social anxiety disorder. Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, 44(2), 128–141. https://doi.org/10.1080/16506073.2014.974665
Schroder, H. S., Dawood, S., Yalch, M. M., Donnellan, M. B., & Moser, J. S. (2015). The role of implicit theories in mental health symptoms, emotion regulation, and hypothetical treatment choices in college students. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 39, 120–139. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10608-014-9652-6
Schumann, K., Zaki, J., & Dweck, C. S. (2014). Addressing the empathy deficit: Beliefs about the malleability of empathy predict effortful responses when empathy is challenging. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 107(3), 475–493. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0036738
Tamir, M., John, O. P., Srivastava, S., & Gross, J. J. (2007). Implicit theories of emotion: Affective and social outcomes across a major life transition. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 92(4), 731–744. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.92.4.731
Mrazek, A. J., Ihm, E. D., Molden, D. C., Mrazek, M. D., Zedelius, C. M., & Schooler, J. W. (2018). Expanding minds: Growth mindsets of self-regulation and the influences on effort and perseverance. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 79, 164–180. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2018.07.003
