Non-Cognitive Traits, Probability of Success, and Handling of Failure

Last registered on September 08, 2025

View Trial History

Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title

Non-Cognitive Traits, Probability of Success, and Handling of Failure

RCT ID

AEARCTR-0016663

Initial registration date

September 03, 2025

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published

September 08, 2025, 7:41 AM EDT

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Locations

Country

Switzerland

Region

Primary Investigator

Name

Claudio Schilter

Affiliation

University of Bern

Contact Primary Investigator

Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name

Stefan Wolter

PI Affiliation

University of Bern

Contact Investigator

Additional Trial Information

Status

In development

Start date

2025-08-19

End date

2025-10-21

Keywords

Labor

Additional Keywords

JEL code(s)

Secondary IDs

Prior work

This trial is based on or builds upon one or more prior RCTs.

Abstract

In collaboration with SwissSkills, the organizer of the national vocational skills competitions, we conduct a study with young adults (18–25 years) who compete against each other in their field of training. The study aims to identify which non-cognitive traits predict competitive success and how winning or losing affects productivity and self-concept. Participants complete two surveys, one before the competition and one afterwards. The first survey measures personality traits (Big Five, locus of control, grit), self-esteem, self-efficacy, competitiveness, and risk preferences. Participants also complete a task to assess effort provision under time pressure. Before the second survey, a randomly selected half of the participants receives a short growth-mindset intervention. After the competition, all participants complete the effort task again and respond to further questions on self-esteem and self-efficacy. The study examines (i) which traits are associated with competitive success, (ii) how winning and losing affect productivity and psychological resources, and (iii) whether a growth mindset mitigates negative consequences of failure.

External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation

Schilter, Claudio and Stefan Wolter. 2025. "Non-Cognitive Traits, Probability of Success, and Handling of Failure." AEA RCT Registry. September 08. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.16663-1.0

Sponsors & Partners

Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)

Intervention (Hidden)

A randomly selected half of the participants receives a short growth-mindset intervention. The intervention is based on Yeager et al. (2019), but tailored to the setting at hand. It is embedded in the follow-up survey in the form of 4 questions which are designed to teach in an engaged fashion about the growth mindset (treatment) or the human brain in general (control).

Yeager, D.S., Hanselman, P., Walton, G.M. et al. A national experiment reveals where a growth mindset improves achievement. Nature 573, 364–369 (2019).

Intervention Start Date

2025-09-21

Intervention End Date

2025-10-21

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)

The primary outcomes for evaluating the growth-mindset intervention are the performance in the Stroop task as well as an index on each self-efficacy and self-esteem - all of which are measured in the follow-up survey. We will evaluate these outcomes one-sided, meaning that in order to maximize statistical power, we commit to only evaluate whether or not the growth-mindset intervention leads to improvements (relative to the control group) in the Stroop task as well as self-efficacy and self-esteem.
In addition, we will analyze if losing the competition affects grit and locus of control (both measured in the follow-up survey but prior to the treatment). We will analyze this part in a two-sided fashion.

Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)

Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Participants complete two surveys, one before the competition and one afterwards. The competition is specific to their occupation and in each occupation. In each of 92 occupation, an average of approximately 11 to 12 people compete for the win. We recruit participants for our study through the organizer SwissSkills. The first survey measures personality traits (Big Five, locus of control, grit), self-esteem, self-efficacy, competitiveness, and risk preferences, and it also includes a Stroop test. The second survey measures again grit and locus of control. It then randomly presents participants either 4 questions on treatment or control (following Yeager et al., 2019), after which we repeat the questions on self-esteem, self-efficacy as well as the Stroop task from the baseline.

Yeager, D.S., Hanselman, P., Walton, G.M. et al. A national experiment reveals where a growth mindset improves achievement. Nature 573, 364–369 (2019).

Experimental Design Details

Randomization Method

Randomization is conducted within the survey software Qualtrics.

Randomization Unit

Individual

Was the treatment clustered?

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters

700 individuals

Sample size: planned number of observations

700 individuals

Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms

350 individuals control
350 individuals treatment

Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)

With 700 participants, we have power to detect a minimum treatment effect of 0.19 standard deviations for the one-sided analysis of the growth-mindset intervention and 0.21 standard deviations for the two-sided analyses.

Supporting Documents and Materials

IRB