Social Cognitive Theory

and Self-Efficacy
Balicud, Castro, Crisostomo, Evasco, Losa, Mariano

Social Cognitive Theory

Social Cognitive Theory proposes that individuals do not simply

respond to environmental influences, but rather they actively seek

and interpret information

Human functioning is viewed as the product of a dynamic

interplay of personal, behavioural, and environmental

influences

People are viewed as self-organizing, proactive, self-reflecting and

self-regulating rather than as reactive organisms shaped and

shepherded by environmental forces or driven by concealed inner
impulses.

Conceptual Model

Factors Interrelation
Expectations, beliefs, self- perceptions, goals and intentions

give shape and direction to behaviour. What people think,

believe, and feel, affects how they behave. The natural and
extrinsic effects of their actions, in turn, partly determine
their thought patterns and emotional reactions.

Factors Interrelation
Human expectations, beliefs, emotional bents and cognitive

competencies are developed and modified by social influences that

convey information and activate emotional reactions through
modelling, instruction and social persuasion. People similarly
activate different social reactions depending on their socially
conferred roles and status. Thus, by their social status and
observable characteristics people can affect their social
environment before they say or do anything.

Factors Interrelation
In the transactions of everyday life, behaviour alters

environmental conditions and is, in turn, altered by the very

conditions it creates. The environment is not a fixed entity
that inevitably impinges upon individuals. But most aspects of
the environment do not operate as an influence until they are
activated by appropriate behaviour.

 While it may seem that one factor is the majority, or lead

reason, there are numerous factors that play a role in human

behaviour.
Furthermore, the influencing factors are not of equal
strength, nor do they all occur concurrently

Process of Goal Realization

The Social Cognitive Theory is composed of four processes of

goal realization:

self-observation
self-evaluation
self-reaction and
self-efficacy.

These components are interrelated, each having an effect on

motivation and goal attainment

Perceived Self-Efficacy
One of the self-regulatory mechanisms in the Social Cognitive
Theory that governs self regulation of motivation and
performance (goal realization).
Concerns peoples belief in their capabilities to mobilize
motivation, cognitive resources and courses of action needed to
exercise control over events in their lives.

How Self-Efficacy Beliefs Influence

Human Functioning

Choice behaviour

People tend to avoid engaging in a task where their efficacy is low, and generally undertake tasks

where their efficacy is high.

Accurate self-efficacy appraisal are important. The consequences are aversive for high-efficacy/low
skill (irreparable harm) and restrictive (no growth) for low-efficacy/high skill.
The efficacy judgments that are the most functional are probably those that slightly exceed what one
can do at any given time.

Effort expenditure and persistence

The stronger the perceived self-efficacy, the more vigorous and persistent are people's their efforts.
There is a distinction between the effects of strength of perceived self-efficacy on effort during

learning and during execution of established skills.

Self doubt creates the impetus for learning but hinders adept use of previously established skills. In
other words, high self-efficacy can be a double-edged sword, because individuals with high selfefficacy "may feel little need to invest much preparatory effort
It is when one is applying skills that high-efficacy "intensifies and sustains the effort needed to realize a
difficult performance, which are hard to attain if one is doubt-ridden

How Self-Efficacy Beliefs Influence

Human Functioning
Thought patterns and emotional reactions
Individuals with low self-efficacy tend to believe that things are tougher than

they really are. This creates stress and narrow vision of how best to go about
the problem. "By contrast, persons who have a strong sense of efficacy
deploy their attention and effort to the demands of the situation and are
spurred by obstacles to greater effort
Perceived self-efficacy also shapes causal thinking. High efficacy people
attribute failure to insufficient effort (this supports a success orientation);
low efficacy attribute failure to deficient ability
Humans as producers rather than simply foretellers of

behavior

"Research shows that people who regard themselves as highly efficacious act,

think, and feel differently from those who perceive themselves as

inefficacious. They produce their own future, rather than simply foretell it

Principal ways of Instilling and

Strengthening Self-Efficacy
Mastery Experiences
Performance successes strengthens self-belief in capability;

Failure creates doubts

Note however that if people experience only easy successes,
they come to expect results quickly and are easily discouraged
by failures. Therefore to gain a resilient sense of efficacy, people
must experience overcoming obstacles through perseverant
effort.
People becomes assured of their capabilities through repeated
success and they can manage failures and setbacks without being
adversely affected by them.

Principal ways of Instilling and

Strengthening Self-Efficacy
Modelling
Proficient models builds self-belief of capability by conveying to

observers effective strategies for managing different situations

Modelling also affects self-efficacy beliefs by social comparison
process. Seeing similar others succeed by sustained effort
raises observers belief about their capabilities. Others failure
despite high efforts however lowers observers' judgment of
their capabilities

Principal ways of Instilling and

Strengthening Self-Efficacy
Social Persuasions
If people receives realistic encouragements, they are likely to exert

greater effort and become successful.

However, if self-efficacy is raised to unrealistic levels, they run the
risk of failure that undermine their perception of personal efficacy
Successful Motivators and Efficacy Builders do more than convey
positive appraisals. They assign them task in ways that brings success
and avoid them placing them prematurely in situations in which they
will likely fail.
Success is measured in terms of self-improvement rather than
triumph over others

Principal ways of Instilling and

Strengthening Self-Efficacy
Enhancing Physical Status
Reading of emotional arousals and tensions as signs of

vulnerability to poor performance

Reduce stress levels or to alter their dysfunctional construal of
somatic information

End of Presentation