All Guides: Recreation Theory and Philosophy: Self-Efficacy

Definition:

Self-efficacy is a person’s belief that he or she can (or cannot) successfully organize and execute an action to achieve a desired outcome in a particular situation.

Self-Efficacy Theory (Exert from: "Outdoor Adventure Pursuits: Foundations, Models, and Theories.")

Originally conceptualized by Bandura (1977), self-efficacy refers to personal judgements of how well one can preform actions in specific situations that may contain ambiguous, unpredictable, and stressful features. Self-efficacy implies a personal appraisal and weighing of both ability and non-ability factors such as:

Perceived ability for the activity
Amount of effort to be expended
Perceived difficulty of the task
Amount of expected assistance to be received
Type of situational circumstances
Previous patterns of success or non-success

In addition, individual efficacy statements can be made and altered by four processes: (1) performance accomplishment, (2) verbal persuasion, (3) vicarious experience, and (4) emotional arousal.

Ewert, A. W. (1989). Models and Theories in Outdoor Adventure Pursuits. In Outdoor Adventure Pursuits: Foundations, models, and Theories (pp. 91–92). essay, Publishing Horizons, Inc.

Media/Videos:

Links/Documents:

Self-efficacy Research Starter
Self-efficacy, a central concept in Albert Bandura’s social cognitive theory, is one’s belief or lack of belief that one can bring about a particular outcome or change. It has been shown to play an important role in a wide range of human endeavors.
The Neuroscience of Self-Efficacy: Vertically Integrated Leisure Theory and Its Implications for Theory-Based Programming.
The purpose of this paper is to explain and establish a link between social-psychological and biological explanations of self-efficacy theory. Specifically, the paper uses a hypothetical rock climbing program to illustrate how a practitioner could enhance the four sources of self-efficacious beliefs (enactive attainment, vicarious experience, verbal persuasion, and physiological state), in a way that would increase the likelihood of releasing four risk/reward brain chemicals (dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin, and endorphin) while decreasing the likelihood of releasing the stress hormone cortisol. By understanding and applying self-efficacy theory at the social-psychological and biological levels--a process called vertical integration--practitioners could improve program implementation and evaluation, thereby enhancing the overall outcomes of their programs. Furthermore, adoption of a vertically integrated self-efficacy theory could help bridge the research--practice gap.
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PDF downloadable.
The Influence of Constraints and Self-Efficacies on Participation in Regular Active Recreation.
This study examined the ways in which perceived constraints and self-efficacies associated with participation in active recreation influenced Hong Kong and Australian university students' interest, intention, and participation in regular active recreation. The study indicated that perceived constraints have weak negative effects whereas self-efficacies have stronger positive effects on students' interest, intention, and participation in regular active recreation. Time efficacy, persistence efficacy, and activity efficacy emerged as important indirect motivators of active recreation engagement. The influences of constraints and self-efficacies on active recreation participation mainly occurred indirectly through adjustments in participation interest and intention.
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Translation and PDF available.

Self-Efficacy Graphic
Self-Efficacy/Self-Confidence
Exert from: "Outdoor Adventure Pursuits: Foundations, Models, and Theories."
Self-Efficacy Theory
Complete Exert from: "Outdoor Adventure Pursuits: Foundations, Models, and Theories."
Citation: Ewert, A. W. (1989). Chapter 6 : models and Theories in Outdoor Adventure Pursuit : Self-Efficacy Theory. In Outdoor Adventure Pursuits: Foundations, models, and theories (pp. 91-94). essay, Publishing Horizons.