Fermat's Library | Self-Control and Grit: Related but Separable Determinants of Success annotated/explained version.

# Highlights ** Why are some people more successful than others?...

### TL;DR *Other than talent and opportunity, what makes some pe...

Angela Duckworth is a professor of psychology at the University of ...

James Gross is a Professor of Psychology at Stanford University. ...

You can find another interesting paper about this topic annotated o...

> ### grit *passion for and perseverance toward especially long-t...

What are "ego strength, effortful control, and the big five conscie...

### Grit (*passion*) Grit is a novel concept related to passion...

### Self-control (*resisting temptations*) Self-control refers...

The authors propose the hierarchical goal framework in order to **i...

> ***The alternative to exercising self-control is indulging in an ...

Current Directions in Psychological

Science

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DOI: 10.1177/0963721414541462

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Why are some people more successful than others? One

obvious answer is talent. Another is opportunity. But

even people who have comparable levels of talent and

opportunity often enjoy strikingly different levels of suc-

cess. Applying the scientific method to this age-old ques-

tion has yielded important new insights regarding the

determinants of both everyday success and extraordinary

achievement. What is lacking—and of central interest in

this article—is an integrative framework for understand-

ing the requirements for these two kinds of success.

The idea that the determinants of everyday success

differ from the determinants of extraordinary achieve-

ment goes back to the earliest days of psychology. Galton

(1869/2006) contrasted “self-denial” in the face of “hourly

temptations” with what he considered, other than talent,

to be the essential features of high achievers—namely,

“zeal [and] the capacity for hard labour” (pp. 40–41).

What Galton termed “self-denial” is now referred to as

self-control, which includes both inhibiting strong but

ultimately undesirable impulses and activating weak but

ultimately desirable impulses (Fujita, 2011). Galton’s con-

ception of zeal and the capacity for hard work corre-

sponds to grit, a newer construct defined as passion for

and perseverance toward especially long-term goals

(Duckworth, Peterson, Matthews, & Kelly, 2007; see also

Vallerand etal., 2003).

Today, “self-control” and “grit” are sometimes used

interchangeably. However, despite overlap in key under-

lying psychological processes, self-control and grit are not

identical. To understand their similarities and differences,

we employ a hierarchical goal framework that draws on

contemporary goal theories. This integrative perspective

generates several testable predictions and also sharpens

prescriptions for improving success outcomes.

Self-Control: Resisting the Hourly

Temptations

Like Galton, both Freud (1920) and James (1890) specu-

lated that the capacity to regulate attention, emotion, and

behavior was essential to everyday success. Self-control,

541462CDP

XXX10.1177/0963721414541462Duckworth, GrossSelf-Control and Grit

research-article2014

Corresponding Author:

Angela L. Duckworth, Department of Psychology, University of

Pennsylvania, 3701 Market St., Suite 215, Philadelphia, PA 19104

E-mail: duckwort@sas.upenn.edu

Self-Control and Grit: Related but

Separable Determinants of Success

Angela Duckworth

and James J. Gross

University of Pennsylvania and

Stanford University

Abstract

Other than talent and opportunity, what makes some people more successful than others? One important determinant

of success is self-control—the capacity to regulate attention, emotion, and behavior in the presence of temptation.

A second important determinant of success is grit—the tenacious pursuit of a dominant superordinate goal despite

setbacks. Self-control and grit are strongly correlated, but not perfectly so. This means that some people with high

levels of self-control capably handle temptations but do not consistently pursue a dominant goal. Likewise, some

exceptional achievers are prodigiously gritty but succumb to temptations in domains other than their chosen life

passion. Understanding how goals are hierarchically organized clarifies how self-control and grit are related but

distinct: Self-control entails aligning actions with any valued goal despite momentarily more-alluring alternatives; grit,

in contrast, entails having and working assiduously toward a single challenging superordinate goal through thick and

thin, on a timescale of years or even decades. Although both self-control and grit entail aligning actions with intentions,

they operate in different ways and over different timescales. This hierarchical goal framework suggests novel directions

for basic and applied research on success.

Keywords

self-control, grit, volition, motivation, achievement

2 Duckworth, Gross

like the related constructs of ego strength, effortful con-

trol, and Big Five conscientiousness, is associated with

positive life outcomes (de Ridder, Lensvelt-Mulders,

Finkenauer, Stok, & Baumeister, 2012; Hofmann, Fisher,

Luhmann, Vohs, & Baumeister, 2014; Roberts, Jackson,

Fayard, Edmonds, & Meints, 2009). Prospective longitudi-

nal studies have confirmed that higher levels of self-

control earlier in life predict later academic achievement

and attainment (Duckworth & Carlson, 2013; Mischel,

2014), prosocial behavior (Eisenberg etal., 2009), employ-

ment, earnings, savings, and physical health (Moffitt

et al., 2011). In fact, self-control predicts many conse-

quential outcomes at least as well as either general intel-

ligence or socioeconomic status (Duckworth & Seligman,

2005; Moffitt etal., 2011).

The psychological processes that underlie self-control,

once so shrouded in mystery that they were summarily

referred to as “willpower,” are now coming into focus

(Mischel, 2014). It is now understood that self-control is

required when there is a conflict between two possible

action tendencies (i.e., impulses)—one corresponding to

a momentarily alluring goal and the other corresponding

to a more valued goal whose benefits are deferred in

time, more abstract, or otherwise more psychologically

distant (Maglio, Trope, & Liberman, 2013). Regardless of

the particular type of impulses requiring adjudication

(e.g., gobbling up one sweet and chewy marshmallow

immediately vs. waiting for two; watching television vs.

going to the gym), it seems that common prefrontal brain

areas are involved in successful top-down regulation

(Cohen & Lieberman, 2010; Heatherton & Wagner, 2011).

In addition to directly modulating bottom-up impulses,

both children and adults are capable of deploying an

array of cognitive and behavioral strategies seconds, min-

utes, or even hours in advance of confronting tempta-

tions (Duckworth, Gendler, & Gross, 2014; Magen &

Gross, 2010). In general, the capacity to exercise self-

control appears to improve from infancy through adult-

hood, in parallel with the maturation of prefrontal brain

areas and metacognitive sophistication.

Grit: Passion and Effort Sustained

Over Years

A newer literature has begun to explore the consequences

of pursuing a passionate interest with determination and

effort over the course of years. Grit and related constructs

are associated with lifetime educational attainment

(Duckworth & Quinn, 2009) and professional success

(Baum & Locke, 2004; Locke & Latham, 2013; Vallerand,

Houlfort, & Forest, 2014; Wrzesniewski, 2012). Prospective

longitudinal studies have shown that grit predicts the com-

pletion of challenging goals despite obstacles and set-

backs. For instance, grittier high school juniors in Chicago

public schools are more likely to graduate on time 1 year

later (Eskreis-Winkler, Duckworth, Shulman, & Beale,

2014). Grittier cadets are more likely than their less gritty

peers to make it through the first arduous summer at West

Point (Duckworth etal., 2007; Duckworth & Quinn, 2009).

Grittier novice teachers are more likely to stay in teaching,

and among the teachers who do stay, those who are grit-

tier are more effective (Duckworth & Quinn, 2009;

Robertson-Kraft & Duckworth, 2014).

Research on grit is still in its infancy, and much remains

to be discovered about its underlying psychological

mechanisms. One study has shown that in the National

Spelling Bee, grittier competitors accumulate more hours

of deliberate practice over the course of years, which in

turn fully mediates the effect of grit on final ranking

(Duckworth, Kirby, Tsukayama, Berstein, & Ericsson,

2011). Related research has identified harmonious pas-

sion (i.e., autonomous internalization of a passionate

activity into one’s identity) as a predictor of deliberate

practice and, in turn, performance (Vallerand etal., 2014).

Many other studies of expert performers in diverse

domains have found that thousands of hours of extremely

effortful deliberate practice are prerequisite for achieving

world-class levels of skill (Ericsson & Charness, 1994). If,

as Woody Allen has suggested, showing up is crucial to

success in any endeavor (as quoted in Safire, 1989), and

if highly effortful, focused practice is a necessary means

to improving in skill, then it may be that grit predicts high

achievement by inclining individuals to both show up

and work very hard, continuously, toward a highly valued

goal for years and even decades.

A Hierarchical Goal Framework

It is perhaps no wonder that self-control and grit are

often used interchangeably by laypeople and scientists

alike. These two determinants of success are highly cor-

related (e.g., rs > .6 in Duckworth etal., 2007), and both

predict success outcomes over and above intelligence

(Duckworth etal., 2007; Duckworth & Seligman, 2005;

Moffitt etal., 2011). However, some paragons of self-con-

trol lead undistinguished lives devoid of a focused life-

long passion, and some gritty and exceptionally successful

people are famously undisciplined in life domains other

than their chosen passion. Mounting evidence supports

this distinction: Domain-general measures of self-control

are generally more predictive of everyday measures of

adaptive functioning (e.g., grades, physical health) than

are domain-general measures of grit (Duckworth, 2014).

Grit, on the other hand, predicts retention at West Point

and performance in the National Spelling Bee when con-

trolling for self-control, but self-control does not predict

these outcomes when controlling for grit (Duckworth

etal., 2007).

Self-Control and Grit 3

How are self-control and grit similar, and how are they

different? We propose that both their similarities and their

differences can be understood within a hierarchical goal

framework (see Fig. 1). Following prominent motiva-

tional accounts (Carver & Scheier, 1998; Emmons, 1986;

Fujita, Trope, Liberman, & Levin-Sagi, 2006; Kruglanski

etal., 2002; Vallacher & Wegner, 1987), we assume that

goals are typically organized hierarchically, with lower-

order goals serving higher-order goals. Lower-order goals

are more numerous, context specific, short-term, and

substitutable, whereas higher-order goals are typically

fewer in number, more abstract, more enduring, and

more important to the individual. At any level in the goal

hierarchy, goals are more likely to be activated if they are

appraised as feasible and desirable (Atkinson, 1964).

Individuals can have not only multiple goals but also

multiple goal hierarchies; this multiplicity of motives can

lead to conflicts.

Within this framework, self-control refers to the suc-

cessful resolution of a conflict between two action

impulses—one that corresponds to a goal that is more

valued in the moment, and another that corresponds to a

goal that is of a greater enduring value (see Fig. 2). For

example, Monday morning may find the first author torn

between editing the method section of her graduate stu-

dent’s manuscript or, alternatively, checking Us Weekly for

the latest Hollywood gossip. The former action is more

valuable in the long run, advancing the goals of support-

ing her student’s development and of publishing empiri-

cal studies. In contrast, the rival action is momentarily

more alluring—guaranteed to be effortless and amusing—

but alas, in the long run, less valuable insofar as it merely

advances the goal of having fun. So, whether by modu-

lating her action tendencies in the heat of the moment or,

preferably, by deploying cognitive and behavioral self-

control strategies earlier in time (Hofmann & Kotabe,

2012; Magen & Gross, 2010; Mischel, 2014), the first

author hopes to exercise self-control and choose the

manuscript over the tabloid, as depicted in Figure 2.

In the same framework, grit entails having a dominant

superordinate goal (e.g., producing useful new insights

into the psychological determinants of success) and tena-

ciously working toward it in the face of obstacles and

setbacks, often for years or decades. This superordinate

goal sits at the top of a well-organized goal hierarchy in

which lower-order goals are tightly aligned with the

Goal

Goal Goal Goal

GoalGoalGoal GoalGoal Goal

Action Action Action Action Action Action Action

Fig. 1. Hierarchical goal framework. Goals are typically organized hierarchically, with fewer high-level

goals and more numerous low-level goals; the latter are associated with action tendencies, here broadly

construed to include attention, emotion, and behavior.

−

Rival Goal of

Momentarily Higher

Value

Enduringly

Valued Goal

Conﬂict

Fig. 2. Schematic showing how self-control is required to adjudicate

between conflicting actions, one of which is aligned with an enduringly

valued goal and another of which—although temporarily stronger—is

aligned with a less enduringly valued goal. Self-control may consist

in suppressing the momentarily alluring goal or potentiating the more

enduringly valued goal.

4 Duckworth, Gross

superordinate goal, and these lower-order goals in turn

give rise to effective actions that advance the individual

toward the superordinate goal. As shown in Figure 3a,

gritty individuals either are able to actively suppress rival

superordinate goals or, consistent with descriptions of

eminently productive individuals (Cox, 1926; Galton,

1869/2006), lack competing superordinate goals alto-

gether. Figure 3b illustrates how this superordinate goal

impels gritty individuals, when faced with setbacks, to

find a way forward by “sprouting” new lower-order goals

(or actions) when a current lower-order goal (or action)

is blocked. For instance, if a grant proposal or manuscript

is rejected, tears may be shed, but soon enough another

funder or journal outlet is identified and pursued. In

other words, in a gritty individual’s domain of passionate

interest, goals or actions deemed unfeasible are met with

the response of an active search for—or even invention

of—viable alternatives.

Viewed in this light, it is evident that self-control and

grit both involve the defense of valued goals in the face of

adversity. Where they principally differ is in the types of

goals that are being defended, the nature of the “enemy,”

and the timescale that is involved. Self-control is required

to adjudicate between lower-level goals entailing neces-

sarily conflicting actions. One cannot eat one’s cake and

have it later, too. In contrast, grit entails maintaining alle-

giance to a highest-level goal over long stretches of time

and in the face of disappointments and setbacks. The

alternative to exercising self-control is indulging in an

action that immediately satisfies a goal but is soon regret-

ted. The alternative to grit is following a series of different

superordinate goals in rapid succession (law school one

month and medical school the next) or giving up on a

superordinate goal because the means to the end of that

goal have been blocked. It follows that self-control is

more tightly coupled with everyday success, whereas grit

−

Rival Superordinate GoalPassion

Novel Goal Generated in

Response to Setback

Fig. 3. Schematics illustrating processes underlying grit. Grit entails having a dominant superordinate goal, pursued with passion and perseverance,

often over years or decades. The goal hierarchy that corresponds to an individual’s chosen passion may require the suppression of rival super-

ordinate goals (a). When a particular lower-order goal or action is blocked, new goals or actions are generated and then pursued with vigor (b).

Self-Control and Grit 5

is more tightly coupled with exceptional achievements

that often take decades—or even an entire lifetime—to

accomplish.

Directions for Future Research

Self-control and grit have attracted increased interest in

recent years, in no small part because they seem more

amenable to intervention than other determinants of suc-

cess such as cognitive ability and socioeconomic status

(Heckman, Humphries, & Kautz, 2014). We are optimistic

that a better understanding of the psychological pro-

cesses underlying self-control and grit could, in fact, lead

to high-impact, cost-effective interventions (Walton,

2014). However, research efforts targeting self-control,

grit, and related constructs have thus far been fraction-

ated. The hierarchical goal framework proposed here

may provide a useful centripetal force, encouraging syn-

thesis of empirical findings across diverse but conceptu-

ally relevant literatures. Our hope is that this framework

will also be generative, suggesting new directions for

both basic and intervention-focused research.

From a basic-research perspective, a number of crucial

research questions come into sharp relief in the context

of this framework. For example, what are the characteris-

tics of individuals who have high versus low levels of

self-control or grit, both in terms of the types of goals

they hold (Dweck & Leggett, 1988) and in terms of the

processes they engage in to defend these goals against

challenges (Fishbach, Dhar, & Zhang, 2006)? Given that

higher-level goals tend to be more approach oriented

than lower-level goals (Elliot, 2006; Robinson & Moeller,

2014), do individuals who exemplify grit but not self-

control have stronger approach-motivation systems, and

do individuals who exemplify self-control but not grit

have stronger avoidance systems? What are the main and

interactive effects of self-control and grit with respect to

specific success outcomes? It seems likely that there may

be synergistic effects: High levels of both self-control and

grit may lead to greater success than either alone.

With respect to interventions, the proposed frame-

work implies that self-control is a skill or capacity, which,

like other skills and capacities, might be improved with

training and practice (Diamond, 2012; Mischel, 2014;

Oettingen, 2012). Grit, in contrast, is as much about moti-

vation as volition (Achtziger & Gollwitzer, 2008).

Prospective longitudinal studies beginning in childhood

and extending across the life course are needed to exam-

ine how individuals develop superordinate goals of such

compelling personal significance that that they inspire

lifelong allegiance despite innumerable alternative pur-

suits and inevitable mistakes, failures, and other obsta-

cles. Very generally, we assume that commitment to a

superordinate goal is a function of that goal’s feasibility

and desirability, and thus that the diverse psychological

antecedents to such valuations (e.g., growth mindset,

optimism, attribution style, locus of control, counterfac-

tual style, core self-evaluation, intrinsic motivation, inter-

est, approaches to happiness) are logical targets for

intervention and inquiry.

Conclusion

Much of human behavior is goal-directed (Locke &

Latham, 2013). Research on self-control has illuminated

the importance—and inherent difficulty—of aligning

actions with valued goals when momentarily more

rewarding actions become available. Separate research

on grit has suggested that individuals differ in their pur-

suit of superordinate goals of enduring significance. A

hierarchical-goal perspective on self-control and grit

advances the understanding of the related but distinct

psychological mechanisms that underlie these two key

determinants of success. As James (1907) intimated,

research on this general topic is not only theoretically

interesting but also relevant “to practical issues superior

in importance to anything we know” (p. 332).

Recommended Reading

Duckworth, A. L., Peterson, C., Matthews, M. D., & Kelly, D. R.

(2007). (See References). A representative study that illus-

trates original research about grit.

Kruglanski, A. W., Shah, J. Y., Fishbach, A., Friedman, R., Chun,

W. Y., & Sleeth-Keppler, D. (2002). (See References). A com-

prehensive review of how goals are organized hierarchically.

Moffitt, T., Poulton, R., & Caspi, A. (2013). Lifelong impact of

early self-control: Childhood self-discipline predicts adult

quality of life. American Scientist, 101, 352–359. A clearly

written and user-friendly overview of self-control and its

consequences.

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank Nir Halevy and Lauren Eskreis-Winkler

for their helpful comments on this article.

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

The authors declared that they had no conflicts of interest with

respect to their authorship or the publication of this article.

Funding

This research was supported by a K01 Mentored Research

Scientist Development Award (K01-AG033182) from the

National Institute on Aging.

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Discussion

> ### grit *passion for and perseverance toward especially long-term goals* Angela Duckworth is a professor of psychology at the University of Pennsylvania and was named a MacArthur Fellow in 2013. She founded Character Lab, a nonprofit whose mission is to advance scientific insights that help children thrive. She is a #1 New York Times best seller thanks to her book "Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance". Learn more about Angela Duckworth here: [Angela Duckworth](https://angeladuckworth.com/) ![angela](https://angeladuckworth.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/New-photo-of-Angela-in-color.jpg) > ***The alternative to exercising self-control is indulging in an action that immediately satisfies a goal but is soon regret- ted. The alternative to grit is following a series of different superordinate goals in rapid succession (law school one month and medical school the next) or giving up on a superordinate goal because the means to the end of that goal have been blocked. *** What are "ego strength, effortful control, and the big five conscientiousness"? I can tell your about _ego strength_ but not the other two. Ego strength refers to Freud's model of the mind. He believed that we have an _id_, an _ego_, and a _superego_. The id is all of our primal urges, the superego is our morals and belief system, and the ego is an entity trying to get the id and superego what they want in a socially excepted way. So _ego strength_ just refers to how much control your ego has over the other two, particularly the id. The Big 5 is sort of a personality test that tries to capture the 5 top personality traits that relate to job performance. Conscientiousness is a basic personality trait (one of the Big Five) that represents the disposition to be responsible, organized, hardworking, goal-oriented and follow rules and conventions. More here: https://sajip.co.za/index.php/sajip/article/view/88 James Gross is a Professor of Psychology at Stanford University. James earned his PhD in clinical psychology from the University of California, Berkeley. He currently directs the Stanford Psychophysiology Laboratory and his research focuses on emotion regulation. Learn more about James Gross here: [James Gross, PhD ](https://spl.stanford.edu/james-gross-phd-0) ![james](https://spl.stanford.edu/sites/g/files/sbiybj9361/f/styles/large-scaled/public/james_gross_0.jpg?itok=XjbhjL6V) You can find another interesting paper about this topic annotated on the Fermat's Library: [The Mundanity of Excellence: An Ethnographic Report on Stratification and Olympic Swimmers](https://fermatslibrary.com/s/the-mundanity-of-excellence-an-ethnographic-report-on-stratification-and-olympic-swimmers) ### Self-control (*resisting temptations*) Self-control refers to our capacity to regulate attention, emotion, and behavior. We exert self-control when we are faced with two possible choices: - one corresponding to a instantaneous alluring goal - the other corresponding to a more valued long term goal whose benefits are deferred in time Self-control seems to be regulated by the pre-frontal cortex and our the capacity to exercise self-control appears to improve as we age with the maturation of our pre-frontal cortex. Self-control is associated with life outcomes at least as well as either general intelligence or socioeconomic status. The authors propose the hierarchical goal framework in order to **illustrate the similarities and the differences between self-control and grit.** Goals are presented as hierarchically organized where a higher order goal can be subdivided into multiple lower order goals. Higher level goals are longer term, more abstract wheres lower order goals are numerous short-term and context specific. In this framework self-control refers to the successful resolution of a conflict between two action impulses between two different lower level goals and grit entails having a dominant higher level goal and working toward it in the face of adversity. ### Grit (*passion*) Grit is a novel concept related to passion and determination in long term goals. It refers to our ability to pursue an activity/interest/objective with determination over the span of years. Grit is what allows you to be proactive and work towards the completion challenging goals and to persevera through the obstacles and setbacks you encounter. > ***"grit predicts high achievement by inclining individuals to both show up and work very hard, continuously, toward a highly valued goal for years and even decades"*** angela duckworth ted grit [![ted](https://www.deboerfellowship.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Screen-Shot-2020-12-16-at-10.58.16.png)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H14bBuluwB8) Grit: the power of passion and perseverance ### TL;DR *Other than talent and opportunity, what makes some people more successful than others? Applying the scientific method to this age-old question has yielded important new insights regarding the determinants of both everyday success and extraordinary achievement.* In this paper the authors propose two important determinants of both everyday success and extraordinary achievement: ***self-control*** and ***grit***. ***Self-control*** refers to our capacity to regulate attention, emotion, and behavior in the presence of temptation whereas ***Grit*** refers to our tenacious pursuit of a dominant long-term goal despite setbacks. Self-control is associated with everyday success, whereas grit is more tightly coupled with exceptional achievements that often take decades to accomplish. >***research on this general topic is not only theoretically interesting but also relevant “to practical issues superior in importance to anything we know”*** # Highlights ** Why are some people more successful than others? ** ## Self-control The capacity to regulate attention, emotion and behavior in the presence of temptation. ## Grit Pursuing the superordinate goal tenaciously despite setbacks. Grittier people usually log more hours of **deliberate practice** of useful skills, which directly translate to progress towards their goals. ## Everyday success vs extraordinary achievement Both have different determining factor, despite being somewhat similar concepts. ## Hierarchical goal system Derrived from contemporary goal theories. Goals organized into a tree-like hierarchy, in which a leafs consist of specific actions towards the parent goal. Not exactly a tree, as some lower level actions can contribute towards multiple higher level goals. Lower level goals are context-specific and short-term. Can become activated when they become feasible and desirable. Individuals can have multiple goal hierarchies, which can lead to conflicts. When the conflict occurs, the individuals with higher self-control will choose the higher long-term value by using sheer willpower in that moment, or by deploying psychological countermeasures beforehand. If a lower level goal becomes blocked, i.e. funding is unavailable, grittier individuals will set a new goal on the same level to side-step the blocked one (i.e. secure another source of funding). Grit is more important for exceptional achievements that may take years or decades to complete. Self control is more important for everyday success. The time scale of the impact is the difference. ## Summary Grit and self-control are more amenable to improvement than other determinants of success like intelligence, talent, or socio-economic status. For that reason its important to study them in detail. ** Developing both characteristics early in life is the best predictor of successful life. ** Self-control can be improved through deliberate practice. Grit requires more study to understand, how individuals are inspired to pursue lifelong goals.

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