Why do some people succeed in reaching their goals whereas others don't? Historically, most of the research has focused on cognitive ability as the determining factor. But, it's clear that cognitive ability isn't the only thing that influences who researches their goals and Angela Duckworth and here colleagues wanted to find out what other personal traits determine who succeeds. Her research highlights the dangers of relying on a single measure to select candidates for any job or position.
Key Takeaway
This research highlights the dangers of relying on a single measure to select candidates for any job or position. Here, West Point cadets were selected for their cognitive abilities. Yet cognitive abilities didn't predict who would graduate.
Angela Duckworth has been studying West Point cadets since 2004 and has amassed a vast amount of data. West Point is a US military academy with a particularly arduous, two-year selection process. Out of the 14,000 who start the admission process every year, only ~1,200 are accepted.
Upon entering, every student must complete a six-week initiation called Beast Barracks. "West Point cadets care a great deal about how they fare at an institution where the admissions process lasts 2 y and graduation leads to a 5-y commitment to active duty in the military." This makes West point cadets the ideal candidates to study cognitive and non-cognitive predictors of success.
On arrival at West Point, the cadets completed measures of grit (defined as passion and perseverance for long-term goals that are of personal significance). They also completed a battery of fitness tests that included a one-mile run, pull-ups, and sit-ups. Cognitive ability was measured using their SAT or ACT scores (standardized university entrance tests widely used in the US).
On average, 3 out of every 100 cadets dropped out during the Beast Barracks and this was related to grit but not physical ability: It was the grittier but not the more physically able cadets who completed the Beast Barracks.
Grit played a stronger role in who would graduate than cognitive ability
The strongest predictor of academic and military GPA was cognitive ability, "but grit and physical ability played a stronger role in who would graduate than cognitive ability."
West Point cadets were selected for admission because they were "the cream of the crop in their high school." But cognitive ability didn't predict who would graduates. Rather, it was grit and physical ability that predicted their ultimate success.
This research highlights the dangers of relying on a single measure to select candidates for any job or position. Here, the cadets were selected for their cognitive abilities. Yet, in addition to cognitive prowess, grit ultimately got them to graduation.
"If you want to lead a happy, healthy, helpful life," says Angela Duckworth, "you want to cultivate aspects of your character, like honesty, kindness, generosity, curiosity - and, of course, grit."
Reference:
Duckworth, A., Quirk, A., Gallop, R., Hoyle, R., Kelly, D., & Matthews, M. (2019). Cognitive and noncognitive predictors of success. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 116, 23499. doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1910510116