Overstating the Role of Environmental Factors in Success: A Cautionary Note

2018/11/19 by David Moreau, Brooke N. Macnamara, David Z. Hambrick · 1 citation
Psychology · #Grit, Self-Efficacy, and Motivation #Cognitive Abilities and Testing #Education, Achievement, and Giftedness #Malleability #Psychology #Set (abstract data type) #Grit #Social psychology #Cognitive psychology

paper · pdf · doi:10.1177/0963721418797300

openalex publication_date 2018/11/19 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/21

Abstract

Several currently popular areas of research—brain training, mind-set, grit, deliberate practice, and the bilingual advantage—are premised on the idea that environmental factors are the overwhelming determinants of success in real-world pursuits. Here, we describe the major claims from each of these areas of research and discuss evidence for these claims, particularly focusing on meta-analyses. We suggest that overemphasizing the malleability of abilities and other traits can have negative consequences for individuals, science, and society. We conclude with a call for balanced appraisals of the available evidence concerning this issue, to reflect current scientific discrepancies and thereby enable informed individual decisions and collective policies.

Citations

• Grit: Perseverance and passion for long-term goals.
• Improving fluid intelligence with training on working memory
• The role of deliberate practice in the acquisition of expert performance.
• Deliberate Practice and Performance in Music, Games, Sports, Education, and Professions: A Meta-Analysis
• True grit and genetics: Predicting academic achievement from personality.
• Ability and Mathematics: the mindset revolution that is reshaping education
• Much ado about grit: A meta-analytic synthesis of the grit literature.
• Self-Control and Grit

Cited by

• Mindset [wikipedia]