Unpacking the Association Between Growth Mindset, L2 Grit, Conscientiousness, and Foreign Language Performance in a Chinese EFL Context

Growth mindset and academic perseverance (i.e., conscientiousness and grit) are well-established predictors of academic performance. Nevertheless, a paucity of research delves into the combined effects of these variables in predicting English as a foreign language learners’ foreign language performance (FLP). This study, therefore, aims to elucidate the predictive effects of a growth language mindset on FLP with a particular emphasis on exploring the mediating mechanisms of language-specific conscientiousness and L2 grit. Data were collected from a sample of 209 middle school students in Southwestern China, who completed questionnaires and an English test. The findings derived from the structural equation modeling unveiled that growth language mindset exhibited positive and significant direct as well as indirect predictive effects on FLP. In addition, L2 grit and language-specific conscientiousness were found to partially co-mediate the link between growth language mindset and FLP. Importantly, the study extends existing literature by emphasizing that academic perseverance, namely, L2 grit and language-specific conscientiousness, are malleable behaviors shaped by a growth language mindset within the specific contexts of language learning, rather than being fixed personality traits. Pedagogical implications and suggestions for future research were then provided.