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oai:figshare.com:article/33970321 2026-09-23T04:28:16Z category_129 portal_316 item_type_3 month_year_09_2026

Table 1_The Possibilities Mindset Questionnaire: design and validation.docx Philip David Zelazo (4886926) Colin Drexler (25093762) Ellen Galinsky (11925149) Education active challenges engaged exploratory mindsets well-being Introduction<p>The possibilities mindset, a construct that emerged through a decade-long civic science-based inquiry, captures participants’ beliefs regarding (1) the possibility of changing one's capabilities (growth mindset), (2) seeing stress as a challenge from which to learn rather than something to be avoided (stress as challenge mindset), and (3) one's ability to overcome obstacles (self-efficacy mindset) (Galinsky, 2024). Together, these core beliefs comprise a higher-order mindset that supports an active, engaged, and exploratory approach to life's difficulties. Just as Active Playful Learning (APL) in children involves taking on challenges and learning from them, a possibilities mindset represents an equivalent mindset in youth and adults, resulting in greater well-being.</p>Methods<p>A brief 9-item Possibilities Mindset Questionnaire (PMQ) was developed and refined in an iterative way based on the results of three studies. Study 1 involved 160 mostly female child care employees (ages 18 to 68 years) participating in a state-sponsored apprenticeship training program. Study 2 involved a nationally representative U.S. sample of 1,019 youth (ages 11 to 24 years). The sample for Study 3 consisted of 128 mostly female employees (ages 22 to 71 years) at a social service agency.</p>Results<p>Across all studies, correlations between PMQ scores and a composite of well-being indicators (e.g., stress, school and work engagement) ranged from r = .39 to.64 (ps < .01), and remained reliable while adjusting for age, gender, and level of education. Internal consistency remained good despite small changes to the scale as part of the iterative process of scale development, and factor analysis supported a one-factor model. Study 2 revealed that PMQ scores in youth were positively related to youths’ endorsement of the importance of thinking creatively, being curious, and wondering.</p>Discussion<p>Overall, the 9-item version of the PMQ has good psychometric properties and is an excellent predictor of well-being across a variety of samples and contexts.</p> 2026-09-23T04:28:16Z Dataset Dataset 10.3389/feduc.2026.1924769.s001 https://figshare.com/articles/dataset/Table_1_The_Possibilities_Mindset_Questionnaire_design_and_validation_docx/33970321 CC BY 4.0