Self-theories of Intelligence

Dweck, C. S. (1999). Self theories: Their role in motivation, personality and development. Philadelphia, PA: Psychology Press.

In her easy-to-read book, Carol Dweck brings together the results of extensive research conducted over many years. She argues that different people adopt different theories about their own intelligence. Some people believe that their intelligence is a result of gathering knowledge, having experiences and reflecting on those experiences. For these people, their intelligence is malleable, and can grow as far as they are prepared to take it. Other people believe that their intelligence is innate and relatively fixed, and that there is not much that they can do to improve it.

The importance of these different self-theories of intelligence becomes apparent when people are faced with difficulties in their everyday life. Such difficulties can be relatively small, such as learning how to work with a new piece of computer software, or big, such as coping with rapid organisational change or the breakdown of a valued relationship.

People who hold a malleable theory of intelligence will approach problems with the view that they may need to seek out new information, learn new skills and develop new ways of doing things - that is, develop their intelligence to become better equipped to handle the problem. People who hold a fixed self-theory of intelligence will approach problems thinking that there is little they can do because they lack ability. They will throw up their hands, and adopt an already-defeated attitude, often before they try to do anything at all to deal with the situation.

For teachers, self-theories operate at two levels. First are teachers' own self-theories, and how those theories underpin their approaches to small and big problems. Second are the self-theories of their students, and how those theories can underpin students' approaches to learning and school life.

Dweck argues that if we are to build people's capacity to take control of their own lives, then we must alert them to the possibilities that a malleable theory of intelligence holds for self-growth, self-efficacy, and the ability to progress through life. She provides practical examples of how different self-theories influence behaviours for children and adults, and suggests ways of turning self-defeating thinking around, such as modelling learning, encouraging trial and error, and attributing successes to effort.