What is self-efficacy?
Hey friend! Have you heard of self-efficacy?
Self-efficacy is a concept used by psychologist Albert Bandura. According to Bandura, self-efficacy is:
“the belief in one’s capabilities to organize and execute the courses of action required to manage prospective situations."
Or, in other words: your SELF BELIEF in your own ability to succeed and make it happen in a particular situation.
And while it comes from self, and ultimately can only be changed by self, external factors can play a large role.
Four major aspects that contribute to self-efficacy:
Mastery Experiences: Completing a task or a challenge
Observation & Social Modeling: Seeing relatable people overcome a challenge
Social Persuasion: Verbal encouragement and social support
Psychological, emotional, and physical reactions: For example, fear anxiety, moods. Bandera wrote “"it is not the sheer intensity of emotional and physical reactions that is important but rather how they are perceived and interpreted."
Why do we care? Higher self-efficacy relates to:
More Perseverance vs Giving up
Growth mindset vs Fixed mindset
More Proactive & Higher Sense of Agency vs Reactive or Victim mindset
More Self Regulation vs Self sabotage
How is this different than self-confidence?
It’s very similar! The main difference is that self-efficacy is a defined concept within a psychological theory, while confidence is a broadly used word in general life.
A subtler difference is self-efficacy is technically specific situation or goal oriented, while self-confidence can be in relation to a specific goal but can also be more broad.
Self-Efficacy and Coaching
My clients build greater self-efficacy in my 8 week coaching program, Creative Entrepreneurs who Own It, and I love to see it! Here is how a coaching program can deliver on four aspects of Bandera’s theory to build self-efficacy.
Social Support — In a coaching relationship, your coach encourages you, listens, and provides feedback and structure. In my program, we also gather key testimonials from other people (such as friend, colleague, or past client).
Observation & Social Modeling —A coach who is walking the talk knows when to provide real life examples from their own lived experience and, if appropriate, share relatable experiences from clients. A proactive coach will help you tap into your own resources to build your network, to last long after the coaching has finished.
Mastery Experiences — A coach will give you homework connected to specific goals. My client's’ feedback has said that I am a master at gently pushing you to your next level. (Thank you - and we have fun, too!)
Psychological, emotional, and physical reactions (i.e procrastination or tiredness related to specific tasks; anxiety or overwhelm, getting sick in the face of a challenge, etc) — One to one coaching, when it’s a good fit and done well, creates aha moments and perspective shifts. To quote Bandera again, it’s not about the emotional or physical reactions “but rather how they are perceived and interpreted."
After all, self-efficacy is a belief. It isn’t a hard fact, but rather how you interpret facts and what you do next.
Oriana Fowler helps passionate creatives to build their mindset and grow their business, without the heavy workload or emotional burnout. Her structured 8 week coaching program can be found here. Join the email list at www.orianafowler.com/emailvip for monthly articles & community.
Author: Oriana Fowler, BFA, published March 19, 2022
Bibliography:
• Bandura A. Self-Efficacy in Changing Societies. Cambridge University Press.
• Transforming Education. (2016, June 16) Importance of Self-Efficacy [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VW5v6PQ5PEc
• VeryWellMind. (July 2020). Self Efficacy and Why Believing in Yourself Matters. Retrieved from https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-self-efficacy-2795954
• Cambridge Dictionary. (n.d.). Self-Efficacy. In Dictionary.Cambridge.com. Retrieved March 19, 2022, from https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/self-efficacy
• UKEssays. (November 2018). Difference between Self Confidence and Self Efficacy. Retrieved from https://www.ukessays.com/essays/psychology/difference-between-self-confidence-and-self-efficacy-psychology-essay.php?vref=1 •