Examining the Relation Between Grit, Flow, and Measures of Attention in Everyday Life

We explored how the personality trait of grit (i.e., dedication to the attainment of a long-term goal) relates to individual differences in peoples' self-reported attentiveness, particularly with a focus on the experience of flow (i.e., deep, effortless concentration). We replicated prior work...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Psychology of consciousness (Washington, D.C.) D.C.), 2023-12, Vol.10 (4), p.368-380
Main Authors: Smith, Alyssa C., Marty-Dugas, Jeremy, Ralph, Brandon C. W., Smilek, Daniel
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Attention
Concentration
Conscientiousness
Female
Flow (Consciousness State)
Focused Attention
Human
Individual Differences
Male
Mind Wandering
Persistence
Personality Traits
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Summary:We explored how the personality trait of grit (i.e., dedication to the attainment of a long-term goal) relates to individual differences in peoples' self-reported attentiveness, particularly with a focus on the experience of flow (i.e., deep, effortless concentration). We replicated prior work showing a negative relation between grit and inattention (e.g., mind wandering), even while controlling for the trait of conscientiousness. More importantly, we found a positive relation between grit and the experience of deep, effortless concentration such that those who have more grit tend to experience more frequent bouts of deep, effortless concentration (i.e., flow). In addition, grit (particularly the consistency of interest factor) was uniquely predicted by the experience of deep, effortless concentration over and above a measure of conscientiousness. These findings suggest that grit has a robust relation to measures of attention in everyday life, and that the experience of flow is related to long-term goal completion.
ISSN:2326-5523
2326-5531
DOI:10.1037/cns0000226