fei75766_ch17_534-568.indd 546  02/24/20 10:49 AM
Part VI    Learning-Cognitive Theories546
expectancy would exist
ifshebelieves thatshe
haslittlechance ofbeing 
offered aposition. This
judgment might bedue
tounpromising environ -
mental conditions, such
ashighunemployment, 
depressed economy, or
superior competition. In
addition, other personal 
factors suchasage,gen-
der,height, weight, or
physical health mayneg-
atively affect outcome 
expectancies.
Besides being different from outcome expectancies, self-efficacy must be
distinguished from several other concepts. First, efficacy doesnotrefer tothe
ability toexecute basic motor skills such aswalking, reaching, orgrasping. Also, 
efficacy doesnotimply thatwecanperform designated behaviors without anxiety, 
stress, orfear;itismerely ourjudgment, accurate orfaulty, about whether ornot
wecanexecute therequired actions. Finally, judgments ofefficacy arenotthe
same aslevels ofaspiration. Heroin addicts, forexample, often aspire tobedrug
freebutmayhave littleconfidence intheir ability tosuccessfully break thehabit 
(Bandura, 1997).
Self-efficacy isnotaglobal orgeneralized concept, such asself-esteem or
self-confidence. People canhave highself-efficacy inonesituation andlowself-
efficacy inanother. Self-efficacy varies from situation tosituation depending on
thecompetencies required fordifferent activities; thepresence orabsence ofother 
people; theperceived competence ofthese other people, especially iftheyarecom-
petitors; theperson’s predisposition toattend tofailure ofperformance rather than
tosuccess; andtheaccompanying physiological states, particularly thepresence of
fatigue, anxiety, apathy, ordespondency.
High andlowefficacy combine withresponsive andunresponsive envi-
ronments toproduce fourpossible predictive variables (Bandura, 1997). When 
efficacy ishighandtheenvironment isresponsive, outcomes aremost likely to
besuccessful. When lowefficacy iscombined witharesponsive environment, 
people maybecome depressed when theyobserve thatothers aresuccessful at
tasks thatseem toodifficult forthem. When people withhighefficacy encoun -
terunresponsive environmental situations, theyusually intensify their efforts to
change theenvironment. They mayuseprotest, social activism, oreven force to
instigate change; butifallefforts fail,Bandura hypothesizes, either theywillgive
upthatcourse andtakeonanewoneortheywillseekamore responsive envi-
ronment. Finally, when lowself-efficacy combines withanunresponsive environ -
ment, people arelikely tofeelapathy, resignation, andhelplessness. Forexample, 
ajunior executive withlowself-efficacy whorealizes thedifficulties ofbecoming 
Self-efficacy istheextent towhich youbelieve youcanorcannot do
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