Mindset

A mindset is an established set of attitudes of a person or group concerning culture, values, philosophy, frame of mind, outlook, and disposition.^[1]^[2] It may also arise from a person's worldview or beliefs about the meaning of life.^[3]

Some scholars claim that people can have multiple types of mindsets.^[4] Some of these types include a growth mindset, fixed mindset, poverty mindset, wealth mindset,^[vague] abundance mindset, and positive mindset among others that form the make up of a person's overall mindset.^[5]

More broadly, scholars have found mindset is associated with a range of functional effects in different areas of people's lives. This includes influencing a person's capacity for perception by functioning like a filter, a frame of reference, a meaning-making system, and a pattern of perception. Mindset is described as shaping a person's capacity for development by being associated with passive or conditional learning, incremental or horizontal learning, and transformative or vertical learning. Mindset is also believed to influence a person's behavior, having deliberative or implemental action phases, as well as being associated with technical or adaptive approaches to leadership.^[6]

A mindset could create an incentive to adopt (or accept) previous behaviors, choices, or tools, sometimes known as cognitive inertia or groupthink. When a prevailing mindset is limiting or inappropriate, it may be difficult to counteract the grip of mindset on analysis and decision-making.^[7]

In cognitive psychology, a mindset is the cognitive process activated in a task.^[8] In addition to the field of cognitive psychology, the study of mindset is evident in the social sciences and other fields (such as positive psychology). Characteristic of this area of study is its fragmentation among academic disciplines.^[8]^[6]

^ "mindset, n." OED Online. Oxford University Press. March 2022.
^ Buchanan, A. (2024). What is mindset? 100 definitions from the field. doi:10.31234/osf.io/5xeqv
^ "What is a Worldview?". Retrieved 2019-12-10.
^ Buchanan, A. (2024). Mindset types: A systematic review and meta-analysis. doi:10.31234/osf.io/x5ge8
^ "Mindset Tapping The Hidden Power Behind Every Success". 2023-06-14. Retrieved 2023-08-09.
^ ^a ^b Buchanan, A. (2024). The history of mindset: Honouring lineage, transcending partial stories, making mindset research and practice an interdisciplinary and intergenerational project. doi:10.31234/osf.io/dsb97
^ "Groupthink". Ethics Unwrapped. Retrieved 2022-05-05.
^ ^a ^b French, R. P., II. (2016). The fuzziness of mindsets: Divergent conceptualizations and characterizations of mindset theory and praxis. International Journal of Organizational Analysis, 24(4), 673–691. doi:10.1108/IJOA-09-2014-0797

[1] "mindset, n." OED Online. Oxford University Press. March 2022.

[2] Buchanan, A. (2024). What is mindset? 100 definitions from the field. doi:10.31234/osf.io/5xeqv

[3] "What is a Worldview?". Retrieved 2019-12-10.

[4] Buchanan, A. (2024). Mindset types: A systematic review and meta-analysis. doi:10.31234/osf.io/x5ge8

[5] "Mindset Tapping The Hidden Power Behind Every Success". 2023-06-14. Retrieved 2023-08-09.

[Buchanan2024-6] Buchanan, A. (2024). The history of mindset: Honouring lineage, transcending partial stories, making mindset research and practice an interdisciplinary and intergenerational project. doi:10.31234/osf.io/dsb97

[7] "Groupthink". Ethics Unwrapped. Retrieved 2022-05-05.

[French2016-8] French, R. P., II. (2016). The fuzziness of mindsets: Divergent conceptualizations and characterizations of mindset theory and praxis. International Journal of Organizational Analysis, 24(4), 673–691. doi:10.1108/IJOA-09-2014-0797

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