Previous studies have demonstrated that grit can affect life satisfaction in adults, yet the link between these two factors in adolescents, as well as the mechanisms underlying this relationship, remains less explored. This study analyzes cross-sectional data from 442 Chinese adolescents (mean age=15.19 years, SD = 0.44) to examine the connection between grit and life satisfaction among Chinese adolescents and the mediating role of self-esteem and hope. The findings revealed that grit was significantly associated with life satisfaction ( β = 0.24, p < 0.001), even when controlling for age, gender, socioeconomic status, and the Big Five personality traits. Moreover, we found that self-esteem (estimate = 0.08, SE = 0.02, 95% CI 0.04, 0.13) and hope (estimate = 0.04, SE = 0.02, 95% CI 0.01, 0.08) independently mediated this relationship. Additionally, effect contrasts indicated that the mediating role of self-esteem did not differ significantly from that of hope in the association between grit and life satisfaction (estimate = −0.04, SE = 0.03, 95% CI = −0.10, 0.02). These results provide initial evidence for the link between grit and life satisfaction in Chinese adolescents, while highlighting self-esteem and hope as potential mediational mechanisms. Given these findings, the present study provides important insights into enhancing adolescents’ life satisfaction. Practitioners can develop interventions to enhance grit in adolescents while also implementing programs that foster self-esteem and hope, ultimately promoting the well-being of adolescents with low levels of grit.
Chen et al. (Fri,) studied this question.