Self-Confidence and Baseball Performance: A Causal Examination of Self-Efficacy Theory

Abstract

Using path analytic techniques, the causal relationships in Bandura's model of self-efficacy were examined in a field setting. Male intercollegiate and interscholastic baseball players (N = 53) completed self-report measures over a nine-game period during the baseball season. Perceptions of self-efficacy, competitive state anxiety, effort expenditure, and objective hitting performance were measured. Moderate support for Bandura's model was found in that higher performances predicted stronger percepts of efficacy in six games, and lower levels of somatic and cognitive anxiety were associated with stronger self-efficacy beliefs in seven games. In turn, stronger self-efficacy predicted greater effort in six games and higher hitting performance in five games. Results are discussed in relation to the ecological validity of previous causal examinations of self-efficacy theory, as well as the utility of self-efficacy theory as a framework for investigating the self-confidence-performance relationship.