Why praise effort over intelligence?
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Praising effort over intelligence brings several significant benefits, as explained by :
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Encourages Persistence: Children who receive effort-based praise are more likely to persist in challenging tasks, improving their performance over time. This contrasts sharply with children who receive intelligence praise, who often choose easier tasks to maintain their "smart" label and avoid potential failure 1 2.
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Honest Self-Assessment: Effort-based praise promotes a more accurate self-assessment. Kids praised for their intelligence tend to misrepresent their performance, often inflating their results to match the high expectations set by such praise. This dishonesty undermines their long-term learning and growth 1.
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Adaptive Problem-Solving: When praised for effort, individuals are more willing to take on new and challenging problems. They focus on improving their skills and learning from mistakes, which leads to a better overall performance. In contrast, intelligence-based praise can lead to a fixed mindset, where individuals avoid challenges that might expose their limitations 3 4.
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Resilience to Failure: Effort-based praise builds resilience. When performance is linked to effort, individuals understand that failure is a part of the learning process and are more likely to persevere. Intelligence praise, however, can lead to a fragile self-esteem that crumbles in the face of setbacks 4.
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Better Performance: Studies show that effort praise leads to significant improvements in performance, while intelligence praise can lead to a decline. This effect is consistent regardless of whether the praise is given before or after a task 3 4.
Effort-based praise emphasizes actions and behaviors that individuals can control, fostering a growth mindset and enhancing motivation and achievement in the long term.
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