Investigating the relationship between social support and grit in mathematics learning: the mediating role of self-efficacy and gender-based differences

Cognitive 2024demands and emotional fluctuations often accompany mathematics learning in middle school. Grit—comprised of Perseverance of Effort (PE) and Consistency of Interest (CI)—has emerged as a key psychological trait that supports students’ sustained engagement and long-term academic success. Based on survey data from 1,123 Chinese middle school students, this study constructed a mediation model of Social Support → Self-Efficacy (SE) → Grit, and employed structural equation modeling, multi-group analysis, and independent-sample t-tests to examine how support from parents, teachers, and classmates relates to students’ PE and CI through SE, and to further explore gender-based differences. The results showed that (1) all three sources of social support significantly predicted PE, either directly or indirectly through SE; (2) Teacher Support and Classmate Support significantly predicted CI both directly and indirectly, while Parental Support was associated with CI only via SE; (3) Classmate Support had the strongest total effect on both PE and CI, with its indirect effect via SE exceeding the direct effect; (4) male students reported significantly higher scores in SE and CI than female students, while no significant gender difference were found in PE; and (5) gender significantly moderated the direct path from Classmate Support to PE, with the association being significantly stronger for female students than for male students. These findings reveal the mechanisms underlying the pathway and gender-specific effects through which social support is linked to grit among middle school students. They emphasize the importance of creating supportive learning environments, fostering student confidence, and implementing gender-responsive strategies in mathematics education.