An investigation of the association of grit with performance in accounting courses

Grit has become a buzzword in business, with academic research and popular press purporting that grit may be a better determinant of success than even talent or IQ. The contention is that the greater an individual’s “grittiness” the better their ability to work strenuously toward challenges and to maintain effort and interest over time, which results in success. Accounting courses are broadly considered to be difficult courses and a type where students’ grit would likely aid performance. We investigate whether grit is associated with academic performance in accounting courses, while controlling for learning strategies and motivation. Using survey data from multiple courses throughout the accounting curriculum, we find that grit is positively associated with both short-term and long-term academic performance, although the strength of association varies among the grit measures. Our results suggest instructors should consider grit as a trait positively associated with performance in accounting courses and highlights three popular measures available for assessing grit.