Mindset

A mindset, also called a mentality especially when the term carries a connotation of bias or closed-mindedness, refers to an established set of attitudes held by a person or a group concerning culture, values, philosophy, frame of reference, outlook or disposition. A mindset can create an incentive to keep adopting previous behaviors, choices or tools, a tendency sometimes described as cognitive inertia or groupthink, and when a prevailing mindset is limiting or inappropriate to a new situation it can be difficult to counteract its grip on a person's analysis and decision-making. In cognitive psychology, mindset refers specifically to the cognitive process activated by a given task, while the broader study of mindset also appears across the social sciences and fields such as positive psychology, an area of study characterized by its own fragmentation across academic disciplines.