Background

Grit has been recognized as an essential character strength in contributing to student academic achievement in the educational context. Recently, researchers suggest that teaching zest for life may help students build grit. However, it remains unclear how zest for life would contribute to grit.

Aims

This study aimed to test the mediating role of resilience in the association between zest for life and grit.

Method

This pilot study used a cross-sectional design by recruiting 164 Chinese university students (67.7% female). Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study. The online survey package covered the zest for life subscale of the Values in Action Inventory of Strengths, Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale, Short Grit Scale, and demographic information. All the measurements were used in the Chinese validated versions. Correlation analysis, hierarchical regression analysis, and Sobel test were used to test the statistical association among variables.

Results

Significant and positive associations among zest for life, resilience, and grit were observed. Resilience significantly mediated the association between zest for life and grit (Sobel test z value = 2.75, p < .01). 

Conclusion

The current findings will help educators and researchers to better understand how and whether zest for life serves as the positive antecedents of grit in a Chinese university context. In order to nurture students’ grit level, educators can create some interventions that initially focus on building zest for life, and then with emphasizing resilience.