Contributions of Self‐Efficacy Theory to Career Counseling: A Personal Perspective

Abstract

The author provides a brief overview ofA. Bandura's (1977Bandura's ( , 1997 self-efficacy theory, followed by a discussion of the value of this theory to career counselors, which includes particularly useful features of the concept of self-efficacy and suggestions for its application in career assessment and counseling, with a special focus o n group interventions.My interest in Albert Bandura's (1977Bandura's ( ,1997 self-efficacy theory began in 1980. At that time, I had begun a research program examining barriers to women's pursuit of careers in math and the sciences, and I had focused on the concept of math anxiety. Research had established that math anxiety was more prevalent among women (see Betz, 1978), representing, as it does, societal stereotypes of women's inferiority in math and technical domains of study. However, when talking one day with my colleague Gail Hackett, who had been trained in the cognitive-behaviorist tradition, I was introduced to self-efficacy theory.The concept of self-efficacy refers to one's beliefs in one's capabilities to successfully engage in a specific area of behavior. Higher levels of selfefficacy are postulated to lead to approach versus avoidance behavior, and I could immediately see the usefulness of conceptualizing women's underrepresentation in math as a problem of low expectations of math efficacy as well as one of math anxiety. More important, the concept of self-efficacy had built within it both the theory of its etiology and the means to treat it using four sources of efficacy information. These sources of efficacy information, which lead to the initial development of efficacy expectations and can be used to increase them, are performance accomplishments, vicarious learning (modeling), emotional arousal (anxiety), and social persuasion and encouragement. Thus, although anxiety was a useful construct, self-efficacy was more comprehensive in building in, or including, the intervention for as well as the understanding of the problem. Because of this integration of the theory with the treatment, I have been an enthusiastic proponent of the uses of self-efficacy theory in career counseling. In the following pages, I provide a brief review of the central concepts of Bandura's

Exploring the Career Pipeline: Gender Differences in Pre-Career Expectations

“…Aycan (2004) reported that gender-role stereotyping and a lack of support influenced women's self-perceptions and ideals. Betz (2004) suggested that young women have historically experienced barriers in developing selfefficacy and their self-confidence and self-esteem diminish during their academic preparation. Women may also lack self-efficacy in male-dominated occupations because of the socialization process they experience (Clement, 1987;Pell, 1996).…”

Self-efficacy beliefs of youth entering the labour market

“…Self-effi cacy leads to generation of expectations as to the result of an action taken (Bandura, 2001). The key role of such a conviction is also accepted by other researchers (Schwarzer, Jerusalem, 1992;Zimmerman, Bonner, Kovach, 2005;Łaguna, 2010;Caprara et al, 2004;Betz, 2004;Lent et al, 2005;Nasta, 2007). According to Bandura (2001), the measurement of self-effi cacy should be adapted to the area of psychological functioning subject to analysis.…”

Understanding potential career changers’ experience of career confidence following a positive psychology based coaching programme

“…Hirschi (2011) indicates that having positive views of oneself can impact on career change through the development of a clear sense of one's career goals, identity and purpose. Betz (2004) highlights the importance of perceptions of confidence in career choice, showing that low self-efficacy may limit the range of career options an individual considers or the success with which career options are achieved. All participants demonstrated increased self-awareness, which is known to play a part in career decision making, and in career change (Patton & McMahon, 2006) and which has been shown to be interrelated with career confidence (Skorikov & Vondracek, 2011).…”