Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

What Role Does Grit Play in the Academic Success of Black Male Collegians at Predominantly White Institutions?

  • ARTICLES
  • Published:
Journal of African American Studies Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

This study tests the importance of a noncognitive trait, grit, to predicting grades for a sample of Black males attending a predominantly White institution. Using multivariate statistics and hierarchical regression techniques, results suggest that grit is positively related to college grades for Black males and that background traits, academic factors, and grit explain 24 % of the variance in Black male’s college grades. Grit, alone, added incremental predictive validity over and beyond traditional measures of academic success such as high school grade point average and American College Test scores. Implications for policy and practice are highlighted.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Astin, A. W. (2003). Studying how college affects students: A personal history of the CIRP. About Campus, 8(3), 21–28.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of control. New York: Freeman.

    Google Scholar 

  • Berger, J. A., & Heath, C. (2005). Idea habitats: How the prevalence of environmental cues influences the success of ideas. Cognitive Science: A Multidisciplinary Journal, 29(2), 195–221.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bonner, F. A., II, & Bailey, K. W. (2006). Enhancing the academic climate for African American men. In M. J. Cuyjet & Associates (Eds.), African American men in college (pp. 24–46). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

    Google Scholar 

  • Crawford, S. D., Couper, M. P., & Lamia, M. J. (2001). Web surveys: perceptions of burden. Social Science Computer Review, 19, 146–162.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cuyjet, M. J. (2006). African American college men: twenty-first century issues and concerns. In M. J. Cuyjet & Associates (Eds.), African American men in college (pp. 3–23). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

    Google Scholar 

  • Duckworth, A. L., Kirby, T. A., Tsukayama, E., Berstein, H., & Ericsson, K. A. (2011). Deliberate practice spells success: why grittier competitors triumph at the National Spelling Bee. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 2(2), 174–181.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Duckworth, A. L., Peterson, C., Matthews, M. D., & Kelly, D. R. (2007). Grit: perseverance and passion for long-term goals. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 92(6), 1087–1101.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Duckworth, A. L., & Quinn, P. D. (2009). Development and validation of the short grit scale (Grit-S). Journal of Personality Assessment, 91(2), 166–174.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fleming, J. (1984). Blacks in college: a comparative study of student’s success in Black and White institutions. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

    Google Scholar 

  • Flowers, L. A. (2002). The impact of college racial composition on African American students’ academic and social gains: additional evidence. Journal of College Student Development, 43, 403–410.

    Google Scholar 

  • Flowers, L. A. (2003). Effects of college racial composition on African American students’ interactions with faculty. College Student Affairs Journal, 23, 54–63.

    Google Scholar 

  • Flowers, L. A. (2006). Effects of attending a 2-year institution on African American males’ academic and social integration in the first year of college. Teachers College Record, 108(2), 267–286.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Flowers, L. A. (2007). Descriptive analysis of African American students’ involvement in college: implications for higher education and student affairs professionals. In J. F. L. Jackson (Ed.), Strengthening the African American educational pipeline: informing research, policy, and practice (pp. 73–96). Albany: State University of New York Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gosling, S. D., Vazire, S., Srivastava, S., & John, O. P. (2004). Should we trust web-based studies? A comparative analysis of six preconceptions about Internet questionnaires. American Psychologist, 59, 93–104.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hagedorn, L. S., Maxwell, W., & Hampton, P. (2007). Correlates of retention for African American males in community colleges. In A. Seidman (Ed.), Minority student retention: the best of the Journal of College Student Retention: Research, Theory, & Practice (pp. 7–27). Amityville: Baywood.

    Google Scholar 

  • Harper, S. R. (2006). Enhancing African American male student outcomes through leadership and active involvement. In M. J. Cuyjet & Associates (Eds.), African American men in college (pp. 68–94). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

    Google Scholar 

  • Harper, S. R., Carini, R. M., Bridges, B. K., & Hayek, J. C. (2004). Gender differences in student engagement among African American undergraduates at historically Black colleges and universities. Journal of College Student Development, 45(3), 271–284.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • League, N. U. (2007). The State of Black America 2007: portrait of the Black male. New York: Beckham Publications Group, Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nock, M. K., Park, J. M., Finn, C. T., Deliberto, T. L., Dour, H. J., & Banaji, M. R. (2010). Measuring the suicidal mind: implicit cognition predicts suicidal behavior. Psychological Science, 21(4), 511–517.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pascarella, E. T., & Terenzini, P. T. (2005). How college affects students: a third decade of research (Vol. 2). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rojas, J. P., Reser, J. A., Usher, E. L., & Toland, M. D. (2012). Psychometric properties of the academic grit scale. Lexington: University of Kentucky.

    Google Scholar 

  • Singh, K., & Jha, S. D. (2008). Positive and negative affect, and grit as predictors of happiness and life satisfaction. Journal of the Indian Academy of Applied Psychology, 34, 40–45.

    Google Scholar 

  • Strayhorn, T. L. (2008a). Fittin’ in: do diverse interactions with peers affect sense of belonging for Black men at predominantly White institutions? NASPA Journal, 45(4), 501–527.

    Google Scholar 

  • Strayhorn, T. L. (2008b). The role of supportive relationships in facilitating African American males’ success in college. NASPA Journal, 45(1), 26–48.

    Google Scholar 

  • Strayhorn, T. L. (2012). College students’ sense of belonging: a key to educational success. New York: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. (2011). The condition of education 2011 (NCES report no. 2010-081). Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.

  • Vaughn, B. E., Bost, K. K., & van Ijzendoorn, M. H. (2008). Attachment and temperament: additive and interactive influences on behavior, affect, and cognition during infancy and childhood. In J. Cassidy & P. R. Shaver (Eds.), Handbook of attachment: theory, research, and clinical applications (2nd ed., pp. 192–216). New York: Guilford.

    Google Scholar 

  • Vogt, W. P. (1999). Dictionary of statistics and methodology: a non-technical guide for the social sciences. Thousand Oaks: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zhao, M., Lee, L., & Soman, D. (2012). Crossing the virtual boundary: the effect of task-irrelevant environmental cues on task implementation. Psychological Science, 23(10), 1200–1207.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

Research presented in this study was supported, in part, by grant funds from the National Science Foundation (NSF), Division of Research on Learning, EHR #0747304. Opinions reflect those of the author and not necessarily those of the granting agency.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Ohio State University, 29 W. Woodruff Avenue, 310B Ramseyer Hall, Columbus, OH, 43210, USA

    Terrell L. Strayhorn

Authors
  1. Terrell L. Strayhorn
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Terrell L. Strayhorn.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Strayhorn, T.L. What Role Does Grit Play in the Academic Success of Black Male Collegians at Predominantly White Institutions?. J Afr Am St 18, 1–10 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12111-012-9243-0

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12111-012-9243-0

Keywords

Search

Navigation