Individuals may judge VPN

Individuals may judge their capabilities in comparisonwith others. Bandura (1977, 1986) suggests thatexpectations of personal e� cacy derive from foursources of information: performance accomplishments,vicarious experience, verbal persuasion and emotionalarousal.Self-e� cacy is assumed to have three components:magnitudeÐthe levels of task di� culty that peoplebelieve they can attain; strengthÐthe convictionregarding magnitude; and generalityÐthe degree towhich the expectation is generalized across situations.In assessing these components, the purpose is todiscover the type of questions that will best explainand predict someone's dispositions, intentions, andactions. Self-e� cacy is a dynamic construct thatchanges over time as new information and experiencesare acquired.It has been found that perceived task abilitysigni®cantly aŒects performance even after controllingfor other variables (Mentro et al. 1980). Self-e� cacy isalso suggested to improve skills (Gist 1987). Individuals with moderate to high self-e� cacy tend toengage more frequently in task-related activities andpersist longer in coping eŒorts. This leads to moremastery experiences, which in turn enhance selfe� cacy. Those with low self-e� cacy tend to engagein fewer challenging eŒorts; they give up more easilyunder adversity and evidence less mastery, which inturn reinforces their low self-e� cacy (Bandura 1977,Bandura and Schunk 1981, Bandura 1982).