Grit, Coping Strategies for Difficult Goals, and Well-Being

Abstract

  The purpose of the present study was to examine the relationship between grit, coping strategies for difficult goals, and well-being. Individuals registered for an online survey service (226 men, 224 women; aged from 20s to 50s) completed the following questionnaires: the Japanese version of the Short Grit (Grit-S) Scale, the Scale for Dealing with Difficult Goals, the Subjective Well-being Scale, and the Psychological Well-being Scale (short version). Path analysis was conducted to test the hypothesized model that grit (total score/perseverance and consistency) is related to subjective and psychological well-being through coping strategies for challenging goals. The results suggested that the participants' total scores were positively associated with depression, and negatively associated with life satisfaction, purpose in life, and autonomy, through the mediating variables of goal abandonment and goal persistence. Additionally, the total scores were found to have a positive effect on life satisfaction and self-acceptance when mediated by goal adjustment strategy. No association was found between total scores and strategies for modifying or adjusting the content and level of the goal itself; however, consistency was showed to have a negative effect on well-being, whereas perseverance showed a positive effect. These findings suggest that the relationship between grit and well-being may vary, depending on the coping strategy used with challenging goals. Based on the present results, adaptive aspects of grit were discussed.