Grit and Retention Among First Year Hispanic College Students at a Hispanic Serving Institution

Abstract

Hispanic college students attending a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) in the southwest United States were administered the short grit survey during new student orientation for 2 consecutive years (N = 496) to ascertain the association with grit scores and retention after the first year of university attendance. Results indicate that there was a gender difference in grit scores and retention. Few grit survey items were associated with retention, thus suggesting that the grit survey may not be an appropriate predictor of retention for first-generation Hispanic college students.

Keywords

retention grit Hispanic college student Latino

Grit is defined as trait-level perseverance and the ability to sustain passion for long-term goals (Duckworth & Quinn, 2009). A college student with grit can work through various difficulties and maintain intrinsic motivation (Wolters & Hussain, 2015). Perseverance of effort and the completion of long-term goals are also associated with grit (Muenks et al., 2017). “Gritty” students tend to overcome adversity and exhibit higher success rates, while those lower on grit scale exhibit less resilience and less motivation (Hochanadel & Finamore, 2015). Positively managing stressors and emotions is an essential element of grit (Dweck, 2006; O’Neal et al., 2016), which affects retention among college students (Ivcevic & Brackett, 2014; Medina & Posadas, 2012).

The association between retention and grit has resulted in the suggestion that grit be assessed upon matriculation and utilized to predict retention and success in higher education (Peterson, 2015). However, the use of grit as a predictor of retention may foster unfair prejudice within admissions, reduce student self-efficacy, and increase negative beliefs pertaining to one’s intelligence (Akos & Kretchmar, 2017). Moreover, while grit is a desirable trait associated with positive outcomes, the valid assessment of grit remains in question (Barile, 2015; Duckor, 2017), and the application of grit in higher education admissions may have the potential to adversely affect individuals who do not exhibit the desired degree of grit (Bashant, 2014; Dweck, 2006; Stokas-Gonzalez, 2015).

Further complicating the utilization of the assessment of grit in higher education settings is the relevance of this construct for the various diverse populations of students now present in higher education settings, namely Hispanics. While there is an expanding body of literature pertaining to Hispanic students and Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs), there is a dearth of research focusing on the relationship between grit and retention of Hispanic college students attending HSIs. Recent research has examined grit among Hispanics immigrants indicates grit fosters coping with the additional stress loads associated with immigration status (O’Neal et al., 2016). Hispanic college students with grit experience anxiety, yet remain resilient, optimistic, and efficacious (Vela et al., 2015). This study seeks to explore the predictive validity of grit as it pertains to the retention of Hispanic college students attending a regional comprehensive HSI.

Method

Data were collected during the summer orientations for new students during the 2016 and 2017 new student orientation seasons at a regional comprehensive HSI in the southwest with moderately selective admissions criteria. Institutions of higher education achieve HSI status by enrolling Hispanic students at a rate of 25% or higher. The research site has a student body comprised of 32% Hispanic, 8% Black, 1% Asian American, 1% Native American, 50% Caucasian, and 8% other. Nearly 65% of the student body receives need-based financial aid, and 35% of the student body identifies as a first-generation college student. Incoming first year students were administered the 12-item Grit scale (Duckworth & Quinn, 2009) during the online portion of new student orientation. In 2016, the n = 765 and in 2017, the n = 577 for a total sample of 1,343. Hispanic students from both years were selected for analysis, n = 496.

Results

A two-stage multiple linear regression was calculated to predict retention from academic admissions indicators and grit scores. A significant regression equation was found, F(19, 349) = 2.710, p < .001, with an R² of .129. High school grade point average (GPA) and American College Testing (ACT) reading scores emerged as significant predictors of retention for this sample of Hispanic students. No grit survey items or the aggregate grit score predicted retention for the entire sample of Hispanic students. A two-stage multiple linear regression was calculated to predict retention for Hispanic male participants from grit scores and academic indicators. A significant regression equation was found, F(19, 146) = 1.674, p < .05, with an R² of .179. High school GPA (p = .05) and the following items on the grit survey emerged as significant predictors of retention for Hispanic males: my interests change year to year (p = .05), obsessed with an idea for a short time but lost interest (p = −.02), and I finish what I begin (p = .05).

A two-stage multiple linear regression was calculated to predict retention for all Hispanic female participants based on grit scores and academic indicators. A significant regression equation was found, F(19, 183) = 1.858, p < .05, with an R² of .162. High school GPA (p = .002), ACT reading score (p = .003), and the following grit item: I have difficulty focusing projects that take more than a few months to complete (p = .024) emerged as significant predictors of retention for Hispanic females.

Discussion

The only variables that emerged as predictors of retention for the entire sample of incoming students in this sample were high school GPA and ACT reading scores. These findings suggest that Hispanic students who did well academically in high school were more likely to be retained for the first year of university attendance. This finding suggests that Hispanic students should be strongly supported in their academic pursuits throughout the educational process, as a strong academic foundation is necessary to retention at the university level. The majority of the Hispanic students in this sample were first generation and low income. For these Hispanic students and their families, the process of fostering a strong academic foundation may not be entirely understood. A family can comprehend that education is important, but first-generation families may not know how to support their children at home to foster academic success. The emergence of reading ability as a predictor of retention suggests that there should be a focus on fostering this ability throughout the educational process so as to increase the likelihood of success at the university level.

In addition, schools that serve first-generation, low-income, Hispanic students must recognize that familial support may be lacking for the aforementioned reasons. Efforts to mitigate this lack of support can take the form of familial education involving parents and extended family as to how to support their children academically and how to navigate the school system to utilize the resources available to them. Clearly, these data indicate that first-generation and low-income Hispanic students who have been supported academically in such a way that fosters success in high school and have a higher level of reading ability have a higher likelihood of success at the university level.

The gender differences that emerged in the association between grit and retention among this sample of Hispanic students were notable. The variables associated with retention for Hispanic females include high school GPA, ACT reading subscore, and having difficulty focusing on long-term projects. Clearly, previous academic achievement and strong reading skills predicted future achievement for Hispanic females. However, only one grit variable, experiencing difficulty focusing on long-term projects, emerged as a predictor for retention for females, which suggests that retention in college for Hispanic females is complex. Experiencing difficult focusing on projects may be due to more than simply the inability to focus. First-generation and low-income Hispanic females experience a higher stress load due the confluence of a variety of factors. Hispanic females report feeling a dual-role strain due to the expectation that they fulfill a more traditional familial role while simultaneously experiencing stress due to academic pressures (Storlie et al., 2016). Moreover, Hispanic females also exhibit lower self-efficacy during the first year of college attendance (Lopez, 2014) and may experience stress due to being a minority in a higher education setting (Lopez, 2005). The emergence of this variable as a predictor of retention suggests that difficulty focusing on long-term projects did not result in attrition during the first year of college. It may be that this variable is simply the expression of the Latina experience as they navigate the multiple stressors present in their lives and the multitasking necessary to be successful. The fact that the females in this sample were able to retain while experiencing difficulty focusing indicates the resilience of this population.

For males, just as for females, previous academic achievement as measured by high school GPA predicted retention. However, three grit variables emerged as predictive of retention. Two of these variables were positively associated with retention. These survey items include my interests change year to year and I finish what I begin. Indicating that one can complete what one begins is the essence of what grit attempts to assess, fortitude and sustained motivation. Indicating that one’s interests change from year to year also predicted retention after the first year, which may be indicative of the developmental period of first year college students. Exploring new concepts and ideas as well as solidifying a major choice are normative, university experiences that often require that a student change their academic direction. The negative relationship between being obsessed with an idea for a short time, but losing interest seems to indicate that too much fluctuation in one’s interests in a short period of time may lead to attrition. Sustaining motivation during adverse circumstances is essential to college survival, and losing interest in an idea or subject after a short duration of time is an indication of lower levels of grit, which subsequently affects retention during the first year.

It is notable that most of the items on the grit scale did not predict retention among this sample of first-generation, low-income, Hispanic college students. Moreover, the gender differences that emerged in this sample suggest that success in college is influenced by much more than grit. The pressures and stresses may be different for male and female college students and the assessment of grit does not take into account these factors that clearly affect retention outcomes. That is, retention may be more influenced by factors external to the academic environment such as financial strain and family pressure. The additional stress of family pressures and income needs contribute to the attrition of these low-income Hispanic students aside from their ability to be gritty.

The grit scale may have limited predictive validity as it pertains to success in higher education for first-generation, low-income Hispanic students. That is, having grit may have little to do with academic success. Grit for these students may mean successfully navigating the work world and dealing with immediate financial pressures and familial expectations, which may actually necessitate departure from higher education. Therefore, enrollment management personnel must be cautious in the attempt to use predictors of retention such as the grit scale and must take into account that these survey measures may not be applicable to a diverse, first-generation, low-income student population.

Limitations

There are notable limitations regarding the generalizability of this study. First, the data were collected at one HSI in the southwest United States. It is possible that students at HSIs in other regions of the United States or throughout the world may have different experiences. The research site is a medium sized regional comprehensive, 4-year institution. Private universities, larger institutions, and land grant institution may differ demographically in a systematic way, and the results of this study may not be applicable to those sites. Participants at the research site were first-generation, low-income Hispanic students, which may not be the case at other institutions and in other regions.

Footnotes

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Funding

The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Author Biographies

J. Derek Lopez received his PhD from Stanford University, Graduate School of Education. He is currently the director of Hispanic Serving Institution Initiatives at Colorado State University–Pueblo. His research interests include Hispanic college students and the cultural and social factors that promote their academic resilience and success. He has dedicated his career to improving Hispanic Serving Institutions with the goal of helping to foster student achievement.

Jennifer M. Horn is a student at Newman University and will obtain her master’s degree in Social Work in May of 2020. Her academic focus is on LGBTQIA+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and/or questioning, intersex, and asexual and/or allies) elders living in long-term care facilitates, as well as studying Intergenerational Trauma among persons of color. Her research interests include the social determinants of health within low-income communities and best practices within the public health care system.

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