Analysis of the Serial Multiple Mediating Effect of Self-efficacy and Co-regulation in the Relationship between Growth Mindset and Team Creativity of College Freshmen in the Hackathon Program

Abstract

In order to promote future competencies in the era of the 4th industrial age, universities need to provide challenging learning experiences and opportunities that enable students to take initiative. Universities also need to train their students in creative problem-solving skills. In this study, growth mindset, self-efficacy, and co-regulation were selected as predictors for team creativity in a hackathon program, which was considered to be a challenging learning context. In particular, concerning the relationship between growth mindset and team creativity, the serial multiple mediating effect of self-efficacy and co-regulation was tested. Data were collected from 806 students who participated in the freshman hackathon program in the first semester of 2021 at A University in Gyeonggi-do. The serial multiple mediation analysis was performed using PROCESS, and the main results were as follows: First, in the context of the hackathon program, growth mindset, self-efficacy, and co-regulation were found to be positive antecedent factors for improving team creativity. Second, the results showed that self-efficacy and co-regulation sequentially mediate the relationship between growth mindset and team creativity. Based on the research results, practical implications for developing and operating challenging educational programs were discussed, and the importance for providing training guidelines to students in order to promote a growth mindset among them, were suggested.