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ENHANCING SELF-EFFICACY IN THE PHYSICAL
ACTIVITY DOMAIN
by Ashley
Samson, PhD, Department of Kinesiology, Louisiana State University
(bio)
 Physical
activity is defined as "any bodily
movement produced by the skeletal muscles
and resulting in a substantial increase
over the resting energy expenditure"
(Bouchard &
Shephard, 1994, p.77). Although,
the American College of Sports Medicine
(ACSM) and the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention (CDC) recommend engagement
in 30 minutes of moderate activity on
most days of the week, most individuals
fail to meet those physical activity
guidelines (CDC,
2001; Gordon-Larson, Nelson, & Popkin,
2005; Pate, Pratt, & Blair, 1995).
These behavioral trends are of concern
because of the connection between the
lack of physical activity and the approximately
400,000 premature deaths each year in
the United States (Mokdad,
Marks, Stroup, & Gerberding, 2004).
Self-efficacy Theory
Developing interventions for behavior
change present many challenges, and
it is important that they be based on
theories that appropriately explain
and predict behaviors (Baranowski,
Anderson, & Carmack, 1998).
One of the most successful theories
for behavior change, and specifically
physical activity, is Bandura's
Self-Efficacy Theory (1986). Self-efficacy
theory states that people will be more
likely to engage in behaviors that they
believe they can successfully perform,
and avoid behaviors in which they feel
that they will be unsuccessful. People
with high levels of self-efficacy are
more likely to pursue challenging goals,
cope with pain, and persevere through
setbacks, while those with low self-efficacy
avoid challenges and tend to give up
when confronted with obstacles (Feltz,
Short, & Sullivan, 2008; Llewellyn,
Sanchez, Asghar, & Jones, 2008).
One of the major appealing factors
of self-efficacy related to behavior
change is that it is such a strong predictor
of behavior, yet it is a construct that
can be modified. Therefore, it is important
to examine the sources that influence
efficacy beliefs. According to Bandura
(1997), self-efficacy perceptions are
the product of four main sources of
efficacy information: past performance
accomplishments, verbal persuasion,
vicarious experience/modeling,
and physical/emotional states.
Past performances have been demonstrated
to be the most powerful source of efficacy
information because they are based upon
one's own mastery experiences (Bandura,
1997). In general, if one consistently
perceives the past experiences as successes,
then self-efficacy beliefs will increase,
while if the past experiences are viewed
as failures, self-efficacy beliefs will
decrease, (Feltz
et al., 2008). Verbal persuasion
can come in the form of feedback and
speeches given by coaches or others,
expectations of others, or even self-talk.
Confidence in one’s abilities
can be influenced by the encouragement,
or discouragement, of other people,
especially those whose opinions are
greatly respected (i.e. peers, significant
others, superiors).
Learning through vicarious experience,
or modeling, is the process through
which people learn by watching someone
else successfully perform the desired
task. By watching someone like themselves
experience a positive outcome in a desired
behavior, people's confidence in their
own chances for success are enhanced,
thus leading to higher self-efficacy
beliefs (Lirgg
& Feltz, 1991). Physiological
information can include such constructs
as strength, fitness, fatigue, or pain
and can be measured by body composition,
aerobic capacity, heart rate, and perceived
exertion levels. Athletes cognitively
interpret their physiological states
in order to form efficacy judgments
about whether or not they can be successful
in a given task.
"Physiological information has
been shown to be a more important source
of efficacy information in the case
of physical activity tasks than in nonphysical
tasks." (Feltz
et al., 2008, p.12).
Increasing Efficacy Beliefs
Based on conclusions from Bandura and
current literature, practitioners wishing
to increase self-efficacy through past
performance appraisals should provide
physical activity tasks that are appropriately
difficult, but with a high probability
of attainment, provide little external
help, and ensure early successes. By
providing these early positive physical
activity experiences, individuals are
more likely to appraise their past experiences
as successful, thus increasing efficacy
beliefs to complete the task in the
future.
Practitioners aiming to enhance self-efficacy
for physical activity through verbal
persuasion should focus on making feedback
realistic, individually tailored, and
related to the individuals' skill level
in the activity. For beginners, feedback
should focus on the progress made so
far. Feedback consisting of comparisons
to others should be avoided, as Short
and Vadocz (2002) found that this can
actually lower efficacy beliefs. For
those working specifically with athletes,
implementing self-talk strategies for
self-persuasion has also shown promise
increasing efficacy beliefs.
Based on the research on vicarious
experiences and self-efficacy, practitioners
who use modeling to increase self-efficacy
should utilize models that are both
similar to the individual and competent
in the given skill. In addition, the
provision of a coping model (one who
is not perfect at the skill), rather
than a mastery model (one who is an
expert at the skill), appears to be
more effective for increasing efficacy
for performing a physical activity task.
Enhancing self-efficacy through perceptions
of physiological and emotional states
is harder than that of the other sources,
perhaps as a result of the difficulty
in manipulating physiological states.
Once someone has formed a perception
of their physiological and/or emotional
state, it is difficult to reliably manipulate
that perception in order to study the
resulting change in efficacy beliefs.
Practitioners working with individuals
on new tasks should focus on providing
information regarding the expectations
associated with new experiences, such
as soreness, muscle fatigue, etc, so
that the individual will appraise their
physiological state in a more positive
light, hopefully increasing efficacy
beliefs.
references
additional reading:
Ashley Samson is a native of Louisiana
and is a lifelong athlete. She grew
up playing soccer, running track and
cross-country, as well as competing
in equestrian sport. Currently she continues
to run, competing in marathons and riding
horses. Ashley received a bachelor's
degree in psychology from Northwestern
State University and then moved to Texas
to persue a master's degree in sport
psychology from the University of North
Texas. Ashley recently completed her
Ph.D. at Louisiana State University
and has accepted a position at California
State University, Northridge that will
start in the fall.
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