Exploring Relationships Between Grit, Belonging, Institutional Compassion, Pandemic Stress, and Goal Progress Among Emerging Adult Post-Secondary Students

Abstract

Grit and belonging are consistently important factors in emerging adult academic outcomes (Morrow & Ackermann, 2012). This study examines the role of grit (i.e., goal perseverance, consistency of interest, and adaptability), belonging (i.e., sense of fitting in and feeling valued), and perceived institutional compassion (i.e., care/support and resources for students in pandemic-related responses) in emerging adults’ academic goal pursuits amid COVID-19 challenges. Emerging adult participants (age 18–24; N = 258) representing a diverse sample of traditional, full-time, undergraduate students across the United States (60% women; 47.31% White, 18.46% Black/African American, 17.31% Asian, 10.77% Hispanic/Latino/a/x), completed an online survey assessing pandemic-related stress, grit, belonging, goal pursuits, and the newly developed Institutional Compassion Scale (Schmahl, 2021). Unexpectedly, pandemic-related stress was unrelated to student assessments of their progress toward academic short- and long-term goals. But grit and belonging were associated with pandemic-related stress: high stress is associated with a weaker sense of belonging and with lower grit. Institutional compassion was associated with all three major study variables: grit, sense of belonging, and stress. Higher institutional compassion was associated with a greater sense of belonging and less pandemic-related stress. The importance of grit, belonging, and particularly institutional compassion are discussed as they pertain to emerging adults’ perceptions of themselves as progressing toward their goals during stressful periods such as the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Resilience and grit predict fewer academic and career concerns among first-year undergraduate students during COVID-19

“…In another study, grit had indirect effects on social and well-being outcomes among individuals in the U.S. and the Philippines (Datu & Fincham, 2022 ). Similarly, high pandemic-related stress was associated with lower grit among undergraduate students from different colleges and universities across the U.S. (Schmahl & Nguyen, 2022 ).…”

Is Belonging Stable Over Time?: A Four-Year Longitudinal Examination of University Belonging Differences Among Students

“…Existing identity-based campus organizations should develop community programming and community building that reflects their members’ intersectional identities (e.g., Black sororities; ethnic cultural centers developing LGBTQ-specific programming; etc.). Moreover, research suggests that quality relationships with faculty are conducive to boosting sense of university belonging (Means & Pyne, 2017; Miller et al, 2019; Schmahl & Nguyen, 2022). Investing in institutional support for professional development is thus imperative.…”

Grit, academic engagement in math and science, and well-being outcomes in children during the COVID-19 pandemic: A study in Hong Kong and Macau

“…The TMG dimensions have also been associated with well-being outcomes such as positive emotions and social-emotional learning ( Datu & Restubog, 2020 ), psychological flourishing ( Datu et al, 2021b ), greater life satisfaction and interdependent happiness even after controlling for students’ socio-demographic and personality covariates ( Datu et al, 2018b ), and more recently, with students’ relatedness needs satisfaction and meaning in life ( Datu & Fincham, 2022 ) as well as perceived belonging and institutional compassion within context of the pandemic ( Schmahl & Nguyen, 2022 ). Aside from positive mental health outcomes, the TMG has also demonstrated inverse relations with maladaptive ones, such as lower psychological distress ( Datu et al., 2018b ), negative emotions ( Datu & Zhang, 2021 ), and pandemic-related stress ( Schmahl & Nguyen, 2022 ). A recent investigation has demonstrated that only consistency and adaptability were found to be related to such well-being dimensions in the Philippines ( Datu & Fincham, 2022 ).…”

“…Grit, defined as one's passion and perseverance for long-term goals ( Duckworth et al., 2007 ) and adaptability to situations ( Datu et al, 2017 ; Datu et al, 2018a ), served as a protective factor during the COVID-19 health crisis. Studies have established the academic and psychological payoffs of staying gritty among students before ( Christopoulou et al, 2018 ; Lam & Zhou, 2019 ) and during the pandemic outbreak ( Datu & Fincham, 2022 ; Martin et al, 2022 ; Schmahl & Nguyen, 2022 ). However, almost all investigations have focused on exploring the benefits of grit in older adolescents and emerging adults, so their findings do not generalize to younger student samples (e.g., primary school students).…”