Chapter Eight
Seeing Our Futures Through SelfEfficacy, Optimism, and Hope
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Self-Efficacy
 Albert
Bandura, Stanford
- belief that you can accomplish goals
- based on a sense of personal control
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Self-Efficacy
 defined
as:
- “people’s beliefs in their capabilities
to produce desired effects by their
own actions” – Bandura
- “what I believe I can do with my skills
under certain conditions” - Maddux
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Self-Efficacy
 Includes:
- outcome expectancies
- efficacy expectancies
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Self-Efficacy
a
learned human pattern of thinking
 begins
 based
in infancy & continues through life
on social cognitive theory:
- humans actively shape their lives
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Self-Efficacy
Built on 3 Ideas:
1.
humans have powerful
symbolizing capacities
2. self-observation & self-regulation
3. personality as a result of
reciprocal interactions

Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Self-Efficacy

Developmental Antecedents:
1. Previous Similar Successes
2. Modeling
3. Imagery/Visualization
4. Verbal Persuasion
5. Arousal & Emotion
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Self-Efficacy

Neurobiology of self-efficacy =
- role of frontal & prefrontal lobes
- role of right & left hemispheres
 Self-efficacy
yields sense of control =
- production of neuroendocrines
and catecholemines
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Situation Specific
Self-Efficacy Measures

Career Self-Efficacy Scale

Occupational Questionnaire

Career Counseling Self-Efficacy Scale

Coping Self-Efficacy Scale

Cultural Self-Efficacy Scale

Memory Self-Efficacy Scale
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Dispositional Measures of
Self-Efficacy
 Self-Efficacy
Scale
- 2 factors =
general & social self-efficacy
 New
General Self-Efficacy Scale
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Self-Efficacy
 Higher
self-efficacy predicts:
- lower anxiety
- higher pain tolerance
- better academic performance
- more political participation
- effective dental practices
- continuation in smoking cessation
- adoption of diet & exercise regimes
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Self-Efficacy in Psychological
Adjustment
 High
Self-Efficacy related to:
- successful coping
- overcoming eating disorders & abuse
- life satisfaction
 Enablement
Factors
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Self-Efficacy in Physical Health
 High
Self-Efficacy related to:
- increased health-related behaviors
- decreased unhealthy behaviors
- increased immune functioning
- increased catecholemines
- increased pain endorphins
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Self-Efficacy in Psychotherapy
 Self-Efficacy
as a common factor in
therapy
 Build
self-efficacy in therapy via the 5
developmental antecedents
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Collective Self-Efficacy
 “the
extent to which we believe that
we can work together effectively to
accomplish our goals”
- Maddux
 no
agreement on how to measure
 plays
a role in classrooms & work
teams
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Learned Optimism
 Martin
Seligman, University of Penn
- based on learned helplessness
and attributional style theories
- optimists make external, variable,
and specific attributions for failure
- pessimists make internal, stable, and
global attributions for failure
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Learned Optimism
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Childhood Antecedents of
Learned Optimism

partly genetic

partly learned

promoted via safe, coherent environments

adaptive excusing modeled by parents
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Pessimism

develops when modeled by parents

related to parental death or divorce,
abuse, incest

link to television viewing
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Neurobiology of Optimism
and Pessimism

Pessimism and depression related to:
- abnormal limbic system functioning
- dysfunctional operations of the lateral
prefrontal cortex & paralimbic system
- deficiencies of neurotransmitters
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Neurobiology of Optimism
and Pessimism
 Neurolobiological
markers linked to
perceived control and pessimismdepression thoughts
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Measures of Learned Optimism
 Attributional
Style Questionnaire (ASQ)
 Children’s
Attributional Style
Questionnaire (CASQ)
 Content
Analysis of Verbal Explanation
approach (CAVE)
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Learned Optimism
 Learned
optimism associated with:
- better academic performances
- superior athletic performances
- work productivity
- relationship satisfaction
- effective coping
- less vulnerability to depression
- superior physical health
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Optimism
 Michael
Scheier & Charles Carver
- stable tendency to believe that good
rather than bad things will happen
- valued goals produce an expectancy
about attainment
- do not emphasize personal efficacy
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Childhood Antecedents of Optimism
 genetic
basis
 learning
component from early
childhood experiences with parental
figures (secure attachment)
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Optimism Measures
 Life
Orientation Test (LOT)
 Life
Orientation Test – Revised (LOT-R)
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Optimism
 Optimism
related to:
- problem-solving
- planfulness
- approach-oriented coping
- positive reframing
- going to college
- good work performance
- coping with cancer
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Optimism
 Optimists
know when to give up
versus when to keep on plugging
 Pessimists
still pursue a goal when it
is not the smart thing to do
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Hope
 C.
R. Snyder, University of Kansas
- emphasizes cognitions built on
goal-directed thought
- pathways thinking
- agency thinking
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Hope
 Goals
in hope theory =
- must be important to the person
- can vary temporally
- may be approach oriented
- may be preventative
- varying degrees of difficulty of attainment
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Hope
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Childhood Antecedents of Hope

no hereditary component

entirely learned

inherent part of parenting; strong
attachment is crucial for high hope

components in place by age 2

childhood traumas lesson hope
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Measures of Hope
 Adult
Trait Hope Scale
 Adult
State Hope Scale
 Children’s
Hope Scale
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Hope
 Hope
predicts:
- academic performance
- sport performance
- physical health
- adjustment
- psychotherapy outcomes
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Collective Hope
 the
level of goal-directed thinking of a
large group of people
 often
seen when a goal cannot be
achieved by a single person
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Temporal Orientations
 Advantages
& disadvantages of all 3
temporal domains:
-past
-present
- future
 Role
of Cultural Perspectives
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE
Temporal Orientations
 Key
= balance via operating in the
domain that best fits the situation
 Zimbardo
Time Perspective Inventory
(pp. 201- 203)
Positive Psychology: The Scientific and Practical
Explorations of Human Strengths © 2010 SAGE