Psychology, 2021, 12, 1561-1574 https://www.scirp.org/journal/psych ISSN Online: 2152-7199 ISSN Print: 2152-7180 DOI: 10.4236/psych.2021.1210098 Oct. 25, 2021 1561 Psychology To Have What It Takes: A Multi-Tiered Psychological Resource Model of First-Generation College Student Success Leehu Zysberg 1 , Karla Verlinden 2 , Cora Zingerle 2 1 Gordon College of Education, Haifa, Israel 2 Katholische Hochschule Nordrhein-Westfalen, Koeln, Germany Abstract First generation students typically show more difficulties adapting to academic studies and lower attainments than their counterparts hailing from academic families. While the literature offers insights into factors associated with these outcomes, there is little understanding of the processes underlying this phe- nomenon. This study presented and tested a model combining demographic, individual level and interpersonal level resources, all drawn from the field of positive psychology, to account for first generation and non-first generation students’ academic attainment in college. A sample of 199 students attending college in Germany, 38% of whom reported being first generation students, filled out a demographic questionnaire, including a report of the GPA, as well as measures of grit, self-efficacy, emotional intelligence and sense of cohe- rence and social support. The results support a double mediation model that suggests that personal resources and social support mediate the association between background variables (gender), being a first-generation student and college GPA. The results are discussed in the context of positive psychology theories and our existing knowledge of the challenges first generation students encounter in academia. Keywords First Generation Students, Sense of Coherence, Self-Efficacy, Emotional Intelligence, Grit, Social Support, Academic Achievement 1. Introduction The importance of academic education as means of social mobility, and social How to cite this paper: Zysberg, L., Ver- linden, K., & Zingerle, C. (2021). To Have What It Takes: A Multi-Tiered Psychologi- cal Resource Model of First-Generation Col- lege Student Success. Psychology, 12, 1561- 1574. https://doi.org/10.4236/psych.2021.1210098 Received: September 13, 2021 Accepted: October 22, 2021 Published: October 25, 2021 Copyright © 2021 by author(s) and Scientific Research Publishing Inc. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution International License (CC BY 4.0). http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Open Access