Self-Efficacy and Goals

concept
self-efficacygoal-settingmotivationbandura

Self-efficacy — a person’s belief in their ability to perform a specific task — is the central mediating variable in goal-setting theory. The concept originates with Albert Bandura’s social-cognitive theory and plays a dual role: it influences what goals people set, and it determines how they respond to setbacks (bib).

Role in goal-setting

Self-efficacy affects goal-directed behavior at multiple points:

  1. Goal level — people with high self-efficacy set higher goals for themselves. The correlation between self-set goals and self-efficacy is strongest when no external goals are assigned.
  2. Goal commitment — self-efficacy sustains commitment to difficult goals, especially after negative feedback.
  3. Response to failure — after negative feedback, self-efficacy determines whether subsequent goals are raised or lowered. Low self-efficacy after failure leads to goal abandonment.
  4. Strategy discovery — high self-efficacy promotes exploration of task strategies rather than withdrawal.

Distinction from expectancy theory

Vroom’s (1964) expectancy theory predicts that people avoid difficult goals because the expectancy of success decreases. Goal-setting theory finds the opposite: people with high self-efficacy both choose harder goals and perform better on them. Locke & Latham resolve this by noting that self-efficacy is about perceived capability, while expectancy is about predicted outcome — a person can believe “I can do this” while acknowledging “the odds are against me.”

Assigned goals and self-efficacy

Assigning a challenging goal itself raises self-efficacy, because it implicitly communicates confidence in the person’s ability. This creates a positive feedback loop: assigned difficult goals → higher self-efficacy → higher self-set goals → higher performance.

Self-regulation

Self-efficacy is the key variable in self-regulation at work. Training programs that teach employees to set specific goals, monitor obstacles, and self-administer consequences produce sustained increases in both self-efficacy and performance. The effect persists for at least nine months and transfers when the control group receives the same training.

See also