Self-Efficacy

Performance is more than a matter of simply knowing what to do and being motivated to do it. Players often fail to perform optimally despite knowing what they have to do and possessing the requisite skills to complete the task. Consequently, efficacy is viewed as skills being organised and effectively orchestrated to serve innumerable purposes.

Self-efficacy (one's belief that a certain level of performance can be attained) is not concerned with how many skills an individual may possess, but is instead concerned with the performers perception of their ability to succeed in a given situation at a given time. Hence, different players with similar skills, or indeed the same player under different circumstances, might perform poorly, adequately or exceptionally well, depending upon fluctuations in their personal efficacy beliefs.

Research has consistently shown that skills can be overruled by self-doubts, causing even the most skilled individuals to perform poorly under circumstances that undermine their belief in themselves. Conversely, a resilient sense of efficacy enables individuals to perform exceptionally well by productive use of their skills in the face of overwhelming obstacles.

Efficacy expectations are thought to be predicted by six principle sources of information: enactive mastery experiences, vicarious experience, verbal persuasion, physiological states, emotional states and imaginal experiences. We will cover each of these in their own post with reference to what you can do about them to improve your performance!