Exercise/Sport Psychology Chapter 15: Self-Confidence and Efficacy

Would an athlete who is high in self-confidence be more likely to persist in failure and have higher levels of intrinsic motivation?

• yes

How does self-confidence impact successful athletes?

• build belief in one’s abilities through positive self-talk

Can self-confidence be learned?

• yes

What is self-confidence?

• belief in successfully performing a desired behavior 

What are the types of self-confidence?

• State Self-Confidence: moment specific, unstable

• Trait Self-Confidence: general tendency, consistent across situations, stable

When building self-confidence, should your approach be multi-dimensional?

• yes: execute physical skills, using psychological and perceptual skills, fitness, learning, and improvement

How does confidence impact performance?

• Arouses positive emotions

• fosters concentration and increases effort

• enhances game strategies and momentum

What makes emotions positive and negative? 

• emotions that increase performance (+)

• emotions that decrease performance (-)

What emotions would one feel with low self-confidence?

• self-doubt

• anxiety

• indecisiveness

How does overconfidence affect preparation?

• prepare less

What describes the optimal level of confidence?

• stive to achieve goals

• preparedness

• decisive

What is a self-fulfilling prophecy? 

• prediction you make about yourself for the future 

• expecting success or failure influences outcomes

• slumps and breakthroughs are psychological

• optimal confidence leads to striving toward goals

How does under confidence and overconfidence affect athletes’ performance?

• Under confidence leads to anxiety, indecisiveness, distraction, which decrease performance

• Over confidence leads to poor preparation which decrease performance

• balance is key to optimal performance

Can small doses of under confidence improve someone’s preparation?

• yes

What are some characteristics of being underconfident?

• anxiety

• breaks in concentration

• indecisiveness

• focus on bad

• highly distracting

If someone’s confidence level is greater than their ability, they are? 

• over-confident 

why do overconfident athletes have a decreased performance?

• being unprepared

What’s the trap of “talented” youth athletes?

• overconfidence

What is more prevalent, over or under-confidence?

• under-confidence

What is self-efficacy theory? 

• perception of one’s ability to perform specific tasks…situation confidence 

• a cognitive mechanism for mediating motivation and behavior 

• central to Bandura’s Social cognitive theory (SCT)

• Drives motivation and behavior 

What does self-efficacy determine?

• choice of activities

• amount of effort expended

• persistence to complete tasks

Based of the self-efficacy model, what’s the first and second most powerful source of self-efficacy?

• Most Powerful: Own experience

• Second Powerful: Vicarious Experience

For verbal persuasion to impact self-efficacy positively, what must be shared between people?

• trust

• respect

What are the sources of self-efficacy?

• own experience 

• vicarious experience 

• verbal persuasion 

• emotional arousal 

What are the effects of self-efficacy?

• Choice (approach vs. avoid)

• effort and persistence

• thinking and decision making

• emotional reactions (stress, anxiety)

Does self-efficacy and performance have a reciprocal relationship?

• yes

• high self-efficacy over time increases performance

• then self efficacy increases more due to increased performance

• build feedback loop

What is coaching efficacy?

• Coach’s belief in ability to impact athlete outcomes

What are the dimensions of coaching efficacy?

• motivation 

• character building 

• technique 

• strategy 

What is motivation efficacy?

• confidence in ability to affect the psychological mood and skills of their athletes

What is character building efficacy?

• confidence to influence the personal development and positive attitudes toward sport in athletes

What is game strategy efficacy?

• confidence coaches have in their ability to lead during competition

What is technique efficacy?

• confidence in instructional and diagnostic skills 

What are some sources to coaching efficacy?

• extent of coaching

• experience/prep

• prior success (W/L)

• perceived skill of athletes

• school/community support

what are the dimensions of coaching efficacy?

• game strategy

• technique

• motivation

• character building

what are the outcomes of coaching efficacy?

• coaching behavior

• player/team satisfaction

• player/team performance

• player/team efficacy

What is team/group efficacy? 

• shared belief in group’s capability 

• not just a sum of individual self-efficacy, but a greater combined group effect 

What does team/group efficacy require?

• requires cohesion and leadership

What are some sources to collective efficacy?

• prior performance

• vicarious experience

• verbal persuasion

• leadership

• group size

What are some strategies to build confidence?

1. focus on past performance accomplishments

2. act and think confidently (body language, self-talk)

3. Use imagery and mental rehearsal (realistic)

4. Prepare thoroughly with mental and physical training