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Global Versus Task-Specific Measures of Self-Efficacy

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Abstract

Two studies were conducted in order to reconcile contextualist accounts of self-efficacy with recent evidence supporting its global nature. A correlational analysis (Study 1) indicated that Tipton and Worthington’s (1984) Generalized Self-Efficacy (GSE) Scale was inversely related to Rotter’s Internal-External Locus of Control Scale and Beck’s Hopelessness Scale. In contrast, no discernible pattern of intercorrelations was obtained across six task-specific tests of self-efficacy. A single bipolar factor emerged, however, when the GSE Scale was factor analyzed with task-specific ratings of self-efficacy. Study 2 demonstrated that task-specific, but not GSE scores, were sensitive to actual performance on cognitive tasks. These results were interpreted as evidence for the hypothesis that global and task-specific measures assess relatively distinct aspects of the construct of self-efficacy.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. USA

    R. Stephen Richarde

  2. Department of Psychology, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL, 32816, USA

    Alvin Y. Wang

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  1. Alvin Y. Wang
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  2. R. Stephen Richarde
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Wang, A.Y., Richarde, R.S. Global Versus Task-Specific Measures of Self-Efficacy. Psychol Rec 38, 533–541 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03395045

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