Putting Mindsets into Context: Extending the Study of Fixed-Growth Lay Theories to the Workplace

Abstract

Over the last two decades, organizations across a wide range of industries have increasingly started to discuss mindsets, or lay beliefs, about the fixedness or malleability of human attributes could shape employees experiences, performance, and thus organizations. These organizations build their approaches from initial research showing that the growth (vs. fixed) mindset shapes how managers evaluate their employees, how employees respond to challenges and setbacks in their environments, and how much trust and belonging they feel in organizations (Canning et al., 2020; Emerson & Murphy, 2014; Heslin & VandeWalle, 2008, 2011; Murphy & Reeves, 2019; Rattan & Ozgumus, 2019). Despite these encouraging insights, however, mindsets research in the workplace settings is still in its nascent stages. The purpose of this symposium is to feature new research that examines whether, how, and which mindsets shape important outcomes in the workplace, in order to more rigorously build a scholarship of mindsets in organizations. We believe that researchers in organizational behavior must seize upon this moment of engagement to accelerate the development of a substantial body of rigorous research on mindsets in workplace contexts. Inspired by the Academy of Management 2022 theme, “Creating a Better World Together,” these projects extend research and theory on how mindsets help individuals to overcome challenges in their careers and workplaces, as well as organizational leaders to foster a better workplace for the employees. By elucidating the processes with which mindsets shape previously understudied outcomes in the workplace, we hope to contribute to a fascinating new area of mindsets research that promotes human flourishing in organizations. Frugality Mindsets: Exploring Entrepreneurs’ Beliefs about the Nature of Resourcefulness Presenter: Jeffrey M. Pollack; NC State U. Presenter: Tim Michaelis; Northern Illinois U. Presenter: Joseph Billingsley; NC State U. Presenter: Jeni Burnette; North Carolina State U. Mindsets and Employee Experience in the Workplace Presenter: Eva Hsin-Lian Lin; London Business School Presenter: Aneeta Rattan; London Business School Support for Increasing Low-Wage Workers' Compensation: The Role of Fixed-Growth Mindsets Presenter: Shilpa Madan; Virginia Tech Presenter: Ramadhar Singh; Amrut Mody School of Management Presenter: Aneeta Rattan; London Business School Presenter: Krishna Savani; Department of Management and Marketing, The Hong Kong Polytechnic U. Why Do American Workplaces Still Lack Paid Family Leave? The Role of Gender Role Mindsets Presenter: Ezgi Ozgumus; London Business School Presenter: Aneeta Rattan; London Business School