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Self-Efficacy

Introduction

Perceived self-efficacy is concerned with people's beliefs in their capabilities to produce given attainments (Bandura, 1997). Perceived self-efficacy operates a core factor in the agentic causal structure of social cognitive theory (Bandura, 2001). This belief system is the foundation of human motivation and accomplishment. Unless people believe they can produce desired outcomes by their actions, they have little incentive to act, or to persevere in the face of difficulties. Whatever other factors serve as motivators, they are rooted in the core belief that one has the power to accomplish things by one's actions.

One cannot be all things, which would require mastery of every realm of human life. People differ in the areas in which they cultivate their efficacy and in the levels to which they develop it even within selected pursuits. Thus, the efficacy belief system is not a global trait but a differentiated set of self-beliefs linked to distinct realms of functioning. Multidomain measures reveal the patterning and degree of generality of people's sense of personal efficacy.

Structure of Self-Efficacy Beliefs

There is no all-purpose measure of perceived self-efficacy. The ‘one-measure-fits-all’ approach usually has limited explanatory and predictive value because most of the items in an all-purpose measure may have little or no relevance to the selected domain of functioning. Moreover, in an effort to serve all purposes, items in a global measure are usually cast in a general, decontextualized form leaving much ambiguity about exactly what is being measured and the level of task and situational demands that must be managed. Scales of perceived self-efficacy must be tailored to the particular domains of functioning that are the object of interest.

Although efficacy beliefs are multifaceted, social cognitive theory identifies several conditions under which there is some covariation even across distinct domains of functioning. Interdomain relations occur when different spheres of functioning are served by similar subskills; generic self-regulatory strategies are applied across different realms of activity; beliefs in one's learning efficacy are generalized across different types of challenges; there is co-development across dissimilar activity domains; and powerful mastery experiences produce a generalized transformational restructuring of efficacy beliefs.

Content Validity

The content of efficacy scales should accurately reflect the construct. Self-efficacy is concerned with perceived capability. The items should be phrased in terms of can do rather than will do. Can is a judgement of capability; will is a statement of intention. Perceived self-efficacy is a major determinant of intention, but the two constructs are conceptually and empirically separable. Perceived self-efficacy should also be distinguished from other constructs such as self-esteem, locus of control, and outcome expectancies. Perceived efficacy is a judgement of capability; self-esteem is a judgement of self-worth. Locus of control is concerned not with perceived capability, but with belief about whether outcomes are determined by one's actions or by forces outside one's control. High locus of control does not necessarily signify a sense of empowerment and well-being. For example, students may believe that high academic grades are entirely dependent on their performance (high locus of control), but feel despondent because they believe they lack the efficacy to produce those superior academic performances. Perceived self-efficacy should also be distinguished from outcome expectations which are judgements about the physical, social, or self-evaluative outcomes that are likely to flow from given performances.

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