Grit as a predictor of self-regulated learning in students at risk of social exclusion

Over the last decade, grit and self-regulated strategies have gained growing significance due to their relationship with improvements at both the personal and academic levels. In this line, numerous studies have investigated both constructs as protective factors against academic failure, but none of them have examined the association between both constructs in secondary education students with the purpose of improving their understanding. Therefore, this study fills a knowledge gap by investigating how grit predicts the use of self-regulatory learning strategies with a sample of 965 participants in high school. For this purpose, grit, learning strategies, and motivation were measured. The findings suggest that grit might serve as a significant predictor of the components of self-regulated learning. Thus, gritty learners orient their motivation and efforts toward meaningful goals, potentially enhancing their scholastic achievements​​. This research shows the significance of knowing the associations between different non-cognitive skills to understand how students learn and reach their highest potential at the academic level.