In this article, we introduce brief self-report and informant-report versions of the Grit Scale, which measures trait-level perseverance and passion for long-term goals. The Short Grit Scale (Grit-S) retains the 2-factor structure of the original Grit Scale (Duckworth, Peterson, Matthews, & Kelly, 2007) with 4 fewer items and improved psychometric properties. We present evidence for the Grit-S's internal consistency, test-retest stability, consensual validity with informant-report versions, and predictive validity. Among adults, the Grit-S was associated with educational attainment and fewer career changes. Among adolescents, the Grit-S longitudinally predicted GPA and, inversely, hours watching television. Among cadets at the United States Military Academy, West Point, the Grit-S predicted retention. Among Scripps National Spelling Bee competitors, the Grit-S predicted final round attained, a relationship mediated by lifetime spelling practice.

The increasing prominence of standardized testing to assess student learning motivated the current investigation. We propose that standardized achievement test scores assess competencies determined more by intelligence than by self-control, whereas report card grades assess competencies determined more by self-control than by intelligence. In particular, we suggest that intelligence helps students learn and solve problems independent of formal instruction, whereas self-control helps students study, complete homework, and behave positively in the classroom. Two longitudinal, prospective studies of middle school students support predictions from this model. In both samples, IQ predicted changes in standardized achievement test scores over time better than did self-control, whereas self-control predicted changes in report card grades over time better than did IQ. As expected, the effect of self-control on changes in report card grades was mediated in Study 2 by teacher ratings of homework completion and classroom conduct. In a third study, ratings of middle school teachers about the content and purpose of standardized achievement tests and report card grades were consistent with the proposed model. Implications for pedagogy and public policy are discussed.

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Background Individual differences in subjective response to alcohol, as measured by laboratory-based alcohol challenge, have been identified as a candidate phenotypic risk factor for the development of alcohol use disorders (AUDs). Two models have been developed to explain the role of subjective response to alcohol, but predictions from the two models are contradictory, and theoretical consensus is lacking. Methods This investigation used a meta-analytic approach to review the accumulated evidence from alcohol-challenge studies of subjective response as a risk factor. Data from 32 independent samples (total N = 1,314) were aggregated to produce quantitative estimates of the effects of risk group status (i.e., positive family history of AUDs or heavier alcohol consumption) on subjective response. Results As predicted by the Low Level of Response Model (LLRM), family history positive groups experienced reduced overall subjective response relative to family history negative groups. This effect was most evident among men, with family history positive men responding more than half a standard deviation less than family history negative men. In contrast, consistent with the Differentiator Model (DM), heavier drinkers of both genders responded 0.4 standard deviations less on measures of sedation than did lighter drinkers but nearly half a standard deviation more on measures of stimulation, with the stimulation difference appearing most prominent on the ascending limb of the blood alcohol concentration curve. Conclusions The accumulated results from three decades of family history comparisons provide considerable support for the LLRM. In contrast, results from typical consumption comparisons were largely consistent with predictions of the DM. The LLRM and DM may describe two distinct sets of phenotypic risk, with importantly different etiologies and predictions for the development of AUDs.

Intelligence tests are widely assumed to measure maximal intellectual performance, and predictive associations between intelligence quotient (IQ) scores and later-life outcomes are typically interpreted as unbiased estimates of the effect of intellectual ability on academic, professional, and social life outcomes. The current investigation critically examines these assumptions and finds evidence against both. First, we examined whether motivation is less than maximal on intelligence tests administered in the context of low-stakes research situations. Specifically, we completed a metaanalysis of random-assignment experiments testing the effects of material incentives on intelligence-test performance on a collective 2,008 participants. Incentives increased IQ scores by an average of 0.64 SD, with larger effects for individuals with lower baseline IQ scores. Second, we tested whether individual differences in motivation during IQ testing can spuriously inflate the predictive validity of intelligence for life outcomes. Trained observers rated test motivation among 251 adolescent boys completing intelligence tests using a 15-min "thin-slice" video sample. IQ score predicted life outcomes, including academic performance in adolescence and criminal convictions, employment, and years of education in early adulthood. After adjusting for the influence of test motivation, however, the predictive validity of intelligence for life outcomes was significantly diminished, particularly for nonacademic outcomes. Collectively, our findings suggest that, under low-stakes research conditions, some individuals try harder than others, and, in this context, test motivation can act as a third-variable confound that inflates estimates of the predictive validity of intelligence for life outcomes.O ne of the most robust social science findings of the 20th century is that intelligence quotient (IQ) scores predict a broad range of life outcomes, including academic performance, years of education, physical health and longevity, and job performance (1-7). The predictive power of IQ for such diverse outcomes suggests intelligence as a parsimonious explanation for individual and group differences in overall competence.However, what is intelligence? Boring's now famous reply to this question was that "intelligence as a measurable capacity must at the start be defined as the capacity to do well in an intelligence test. Intelligence is what the tests test." (ref. 8, p. 35). This early comment augured the now widespread conflation of the terms "IQ" and "intelligence," an unfortunate confusion we aim to illuminate in the current investigation.Intelligence has more recently-and more usefully-been defined as the "ability to understand complex ideas, to adapt effectively to the environment, to learn from experience, to engage in various forms of reasoning, to overcome obstacles by taking thought" (ref. 5, p. 77). IQ scores, in contrast, measure the performance of individuals on tests designed to assess intelligence. That is, IQ is an observed, manifest ...

Recent evidence suggests that impulsivity and sensation seeking are not stable risk factors for substance use among adolescents and early adults but rather that they undergo significant developmental maturation and change. Further, developmental trends of both personality facets may vary across individuals. In the current investigation, we used longitudinal data from ages 15-26 on 5,632 individuals drawn from the offspring generation of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (CNLSY) to examine whether inter-individual differences in intra-individual change in impulsivity and sensation seeking predicted the escalation of alcohol, marijuana, and cigarette use in adolescence and early adulthood. Latent growth curve models revealed significant individual differences in rates of change in both personality and substance use. Most importantly, age-related changes in personality were positively associated with individual differences in substance use change. Individuals who declined more slowly in impulsivity increased in alcohol, marijuana, and cigarette use more rapidly, whereas individuals who declined more slowly in sensation seeking increased more rapidly in alcohol use only. Although risk for substance use across the population may peak during adolescence and early adulthood, this risk may be highest among those who decline more gradually in impulsivity.

Importance Prenatal antidepressant exposure has been associated with adverse outcomes. Previous studies, however, may not have adequately accounted for confounding. Objective To evaluate alternative hypotheses for associations between first-trimester antidepressant exposure and birth and neurodevelopmental problems. Design, Setting, and Participants This retrospective cohort study included Swedish offspring born between 1996 and 2012 and followed through 2013 or censored by death or emigration. Analyses controlling for pregnancy, maternal, and paternal covariates, as well as sibling comparisons, timing of exposure comparisons, and paternal comparisons, were used to examine the associations. Exposures Maternal self-reported first-trimester antidepressant use and first-trimester antidepressant dispensations. Main Outcomes and Measures Preterm birth (< 37 gestational weeks), small for gestation age (birth weight < 2 SDs below the mean for gestational age), and first inpatient or outpatient clinical diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in offspring. Results Among 1,580,629 offspring (mean gestational age 279 days; 48.6% female; 1.4% [n = 22,544] with maternal first-trimester self-reported antidepressant use) born to 943,776 mothers (mean age at childbirth 30 years), 7.0% of exposed vs. 4.8% of unexposed offspring were preterm, 2.5% of exposed vs. 2.2% of unexposed were small for gestational age, 5.3% of exposed vs. 2.1% of unexposed were diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder by age 15, and 12.6% of exposed vs. 5.5% of unexposed were diagnosed by attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder by age 15. At the population level, first-trimester exposure was associated with all outcomes, compared with unexposed offspring (preterm birth: OR = 1.5, 95% CI, [1.4, 1.6]; small for gestational age: OR = 1.2, 95% CI, [1.1, 1.3]; autism spectrum disorder: HR = 2.0, 95% CI, [1.8, 2.3]; attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: HR = 2.2, 95% CI, [2.0, 2.4]). However, in models that compared siblings while adjusting for pregnancy, maternal, and paternal traits, first-trimester antidepressant exposure was associated with preterm birth (OR = 1.3, 95% CI [1.2, 1.5]) but not with small for gestational age (OR = 1.0, 95% CI [0.8, 1.3]), autism spectrum disorder (HR = 0.8, 95% CI [0.6, 1.1]), or attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (HR = 1.0, 95% CI [0.8, 1.3]). Results from analyses assessing associations with maternal dispensations before pregnancy and paternal first-trimester dispensations were consistent with findings from the sibling comparisons. Conclusion and Relevance Among offspring born in Sweden, after accounting for confounding factors, first-trimester antidepressant exposure, compared to no exposure, was associated with a small increased risk of preterm birth but no increased risk of small for gestational age, autism spectrum disorder, or attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

Prior research suggests that high dispositional self-regulation leads to decreased levels of risky drinking and sexual behavior in adolescence and the early years of college. Self-regulation may be especially important when individuals have easy access to alcohol and freedom to pursue sexual opportunities. In the current one-year longitudinal study, we followed a sample of N = 1,136 college students who had recently reached the legal age to purchase alcohol and enter bars and clubs in order to test whether self-regulation protected against heavy episodic drinking, alcohol-related problems, and unprotected sex. We tested main effects of self-regulation and interactions among self-regulation and established risk factors (e.g., sensation seeking) on risky drinking and sexual behavior. High self-regulation inversely predicted heavy episodic drinking, alcohol-related problems, and unprotected sex, even when taking into account gender and risk factors. Moreover, in predicting unprotected sex, we found three-way interactions among self-regulation, sensation seeking, and heavy episodic drinking. Self-Regulation buffered against risk associated with heavy drinking but only among those low in sensation seeking. The protective effects of self-regulation for risky drinking and sexual behavior make it a promising target for intervention, with the caveat that self-regulation may be less protective among those who are more drawn to socially and emotionally rewarding stimuli. KeywordsSelf-Regulation; Alcohol Abuse; Sexual Behavior; Sensation Seeking; College Students Following adolescence, in the period that Arnett (2000) has termed emerging adulthood, individuals engage in behavioral risks at the highest rates across the lifespan. Although many adolescents drink and some drink heavily, rates of heavy alcohol use increase following high school, especially among those who attend college (Baer, Kivlahan, & Marlatt, 1995). Mean rates of heavy episodic drinking are highest in emerging adulthood. At least occasional heavy drinking is the norm during this period (Bachman, Wadsworth, O'Malley, & Johnston, 1997). Increased heavy drinking in emerging adulthood results in negative physical, behavioral, and psychiatric consequences (O'Neill, Parra, & Sher, 2001;Schulenberg, O'Malley, Bachman, Wadsworth, & Johnston, 1996). Additionally, rates of risky sexual behavior increase during this period, with approximately 70% of college students sexually Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Patrick D. Quinn, Department of Psychology, The University of Texas at Austin, 1 University Station A8000, Austin, TX 78712. pdquinn@mail.utexas.edu. Publisher's Disclaimer: The following manuscript is the final accepted manuscript. It has not been subjected to the final copyediting, fact-checking, and proofreading required for formal publication. It is not the definitive, publisher-authenticated version. The American Psychological Association and its Council of Editors disclaim any responsibility or liabilities for errors or om...