Showing papers by "Albert Bandura published in 1996"

Self-Efficacy in Changing Societies

Abstract: Self-Efficacy in Changing Societies Albert Bandura (Ed.). New York: Cambridge University Press, 1995, 334 pp., $00.00 Research and publication on the construct entitled self-efficacy has grown exponentially in terms of both numbers of studies and diversity of applications. Self Efficacy in Changing Societies consists of 10 chapters that analyze the diverse ways in which perceived self-efficacy troth shapes and is shaped by sociolcultural experiences. Edited by Albert Bandura, the book is based upon papers presented by international scholars at a conference held November 4-6, 1993, at the Johann Jacobs Foundations Communication Center, Marbach Castle, Germany and centers around the theme that "young people's beliefs in their personal efficacy to manage the demands of rapidly changing societal conditions help them to meet these challenges" (p. vii). The introductory chapter, Written by Bandura, begins by addressing what he considers to be "central issues" regarding the nature and function of perceived self-efficacy. The majority of the chapter is dedicated to the role of efficacy beliefs in different arenas of human functioning. In addition, the chapter explores the role of perceived self-efficacy in individualistic and collectivistic social systems and concludes by discussing current conditions that may impede the development of collective efficacy, and ways that individuals attempt to recapture some control over these conditions. In chapter 2, Glen Elder, Jr., describes the essential elements of what he calls an "emerging life course paradigm" and then discusses research exploring societal change in America and the impact on beliefs of personal efficacy. Elder demonstrates how personal efficacy beliefs operate within a much broader network of sociocultural influences than have been previously considered. Chapter 3, written by August Flammer, is a developmental analysis of how control beliefs emerge and change throughout the human life span, with the primary focus being the first 12 years. Rammer also discusses the impact of control beliefs on self-concept and prioritization of various life pursuits. Klaus Schneewind's contribution lo the text (chapter 4) addresses the impact of structural and process-oriented aspects of family life on the development of self-efficacy and outcome expectancies. He examines the extensive impact of early family experiences for the individual and discusses several important issues that influence the development of family efficacy beliefs. Schneewind concluded the chapter by presenting an integrative model for studying the processes that influence the acquisition and development of efficacy beliefs within the family context. The fifth chapter, written by Gabriele Oettingen, examines the role of culture in the development of self-efficacy. The chapter begins with an examination of the impact of cultural diversity on self-efficacy information in family and school contexts. Next, the author identifies cross-cultural influences on children's self-efficacy beliefs that operate in school contexts of specific cultures. The chapter closes with a discussion of the universality of self-efficacy effects on persons' cognition, affect, and motivation across cultures. …

Mechanisms of Moral Disengagement in the Exercise of Moral Agency

Abstract: This research examined the role of mechanisms of moral disengagement in the exercise of moral agency. Regulatory self-sanctions can be selectively disengaged from detrimental conduct by converting harmful acts to moral ones through linkage to worthy purposes, obscuring personal causal agency by diffusion and displacement of responsibility, misrepresenting or disregarding the injurious effects inflicted on others, and vilifying the recipients of maltreatment by blaming and dehumanizing them. The study examined the structure and impact of moral disengagement on detrimental conduct and the psychological processes through which it exerts its effects. Path analyses reveal that moral disengagement fosters detrimental conduct by reducing prosocialness and anticipatory self-censure and by promoting cognitive and affective reactions conducive to aggression. The structure of the paths of influence is very similar for interpersonal aggression and delinquent conduct. Although the various mechanisms of moral disengagement operate in concert, moral reconstruals of harmful conduct by linking it to worthy purposes and vilification of victims seem to contribute most heavily to engagement in detrimental activities. Psychological theories of moral agency focus heavily on moral thought to the neglect of moral conduct. The limited attention to moral conduct reflects both the rationalistic bias of many theories of morality (Kohlberg, 1984) and the convenience of investigatory method. It is much easier to examine how people reason about hypothetical moral dilemmas than to study how they behave in difficult life predicaments. People suffer from the wrongs done to them, regardless of how perpetrators might justify their inhumane actions. The regulation of conduct involves much more than moral reasoning. A theory of morality must specify the mechanisms by which people come to live in accordance with moral standards. In social cognitive theory (Bandura, 1991), moral reasoning is translated into actions through self-regulatory mechanisms through which moral agency is exercised. In the course of socialization , moral standards are constructed from information conveyed by direct tuition, evaluative social reactions to one's conduct, and exposure to the selfevaluative standards modeled by others. Once formed, such standards serve as guides and deterrents for action. People regulate their actions by the consequences they apply to them

Multifaceted Impact of Self-Efficacy Beliefs on Academic Functioning

Abstract: This research analyzed the network of psychosocial influences through which efficacy beliefs affect academic achievement. Parents' sense of academic efficacy and aspirations for their children were linked to their children's scholastic achievement through their perceived academic capabilities and aspirations. Children's beliefs in their efficacy to regulate their own learning and academic attainments, in turn, contributed to scholastic achievement both independently and by promoting high academic aspirations and prosocial behavior and reducing vulnerability to feelings of futility and depression. Children's perceived social efficacy and efficacy to manage peer pressure for detrimental conduct also contributed to academic attainments but through partially different paths of affective and self-regulatory influence. The impact of perceived social efficacy was mediated through academic aspirations and a low level of depression. Perceived self-regulatory efficacy was related to academic achievement both directly and through adherence to moral self-sanctions for detrimental conduct and problem behavior that can subvert academic pursuits. Familial socioeconomic status was linked to children's academic achievement only indirectly through its effects on parental aspirations and children's prosocialness. The full set of self-efficacy, aspirational, and psychosocial factors accounted for a sizable share of the variance in academic achievement.

Failures in self-regulation: Energy depletion or selective disengagement?

Abstract: (1996). Failures in Self-Regulation: Energy Depletion or Selective Disengagement? Psychological Inquiry: Vol. 7, No. 1, pp. 20-24.