Investigating the Relationship between a Growth Mindset and Intrinsic Motivation in a Cognitive Task

Aiming to increase an individual’s level of intrinsic motivation has long been a challenge for psychologists. It has been suggested that fostering a growth mindset may increase a person’s intrinsic motivation, and there have already been studies showing a correlational connection between the two. However, there have been little attempts to investigate a possible causal relationship. This experiment aimed to investigate the possibility of a causal relationship between a growth mindset and intrinsic motivation, particularly regarding a cognitive task. Additionally, perceived competence was investigated as a possible mediator, based on theoretical insights from Self-Determination Theory (SDT). Participants took part in a 2 x 2 mixed design study, with mindset (growth versus fixed) as the between-subjects variable and perceived competence (high versus low) as the within-subjects variable. The results showed no significant causal (or correlational) relationship between a growth mindset and intrinsic motivation in this experiment. However, the results did show support for a positive correlation between intrinsic motivation and achievement, and between perceived competence and intrinsic motivation, as would be expected theoretically. There is an attempt to explain the results, and limitations as well as future directions for research are outlined.