Can growth mindset interventions improve academic achievement? A structured review of the existing evidence

24 randomised trials of growth-mindset-of-intelligence interventions with academic-performance outcomes in school-age children

School-age children, international.

A structured review that weights studies explicitly on sample size, missing data and data quality, and applies a conflict-of-interest screen. It is the most recent independent synthesis and it reaches the same place as the quality-graded meta-analysis.

The strongest studies - larger samples, minimal missing data, high data quality - show null or very small effects, ranging from d = -0.01 to +0.065. Four evaluations were judged both highly trustworthy and free of conflict of interest; two show no discernible impact and two show a very small impact. The review flags that some negative or null results may remain unpublished. Its recommendation is explicit - it is not advisable for schools, districts or governments to allocate significant time or resources to growth-mindset interventions for school-age students, with the caveat that at negligible cost it may be reasonable to proceed.

Low - randomised trials only.

Converges with Macnamara and Burgoyne 2023 from a different synthesis method and a narrower, school-age-only inclusion rule.