Project management self-efficacy as a predictor of project performance: Constructing and validating a domain-specific scale

Abstract

Measures of self-efficacy beliefs have been shown to be the best predictor of individual performance in many disciplines over 30years. This makes measures of perceived self-efficacy a good indicator for those interested in hiring for, or improving specific skill sets. In project management, measuring the skill level of project managers is an important practical and academic question. Practically, hiring managers and program managers, needs an indicator of performance to help select the most appropriate project managers for each project. Academically, a common, established scale to measure project management self-efficacy would provide a tool for improving project management training and education, and increasing the comparability of research results across samples, industries and project results. This paper presents the construction and validation of a set of domain-specific, project management self-efficacy scales and provides evidence of its ability to predict project performance.