Self-efficacy is a person’s perception of his or her ability to accomplish tasks and overcome the challenges presented in daily life. People generally place greater importance on self-esteem than self-efficacy; however, self-efficacy plays a significant role in a teenager’s sense of self-esteem, because it gives the teen a sense of autonomy and responsibility.
The Benefits of Building Self-Efficacy
Promoting self-efficacy has myriad advantages, all of which contribute to the teen’s being better prepared for successful adulthood.
Teens with high self-efficacy are more resilient in stressful situations, from earning an unsatisfactory test grade to facing an impending divorce.
High self-efficacy allows teenagers to feel competent, despite their perceived shortcomings.
Well-developed self-efficacy directly increases a teen’s willingness to take positive risks, such as asking teachers for help in class or applying to a more selective university.
Ways for Parents to Foster Self-Efficacy
Parents can help their teens to develop positive self-efficacy, and it is never too early to start.
Give each child responsibilities according to age and ability. As capability increases, so should responsibility; it is reasonable to expect teenagers to help prepare meals and do chores around the house. Successfully managing responsibility give the teen a sense of competence, which is the underpinning of self-efficacy.
Model positive thinking and problem solving. Parents can verbalize healthy thought processes after they make mistakes or things do not go as planned. These “thinkalouds” can be as simple as, “That meal didn’t turn out quite like I expected. Next time I’ll be sure to look at the recipe more carefully.”
Minimize academic competitiveness, and avoid comparing teenagers to others. Instead, emphasize attaining a “personal best” and reinforce pride in the teen’s abilities and successes.
Provide opportunities for teens to participate in the decision-making process. This allows them not only to see how decisions are reached, but also to contribute productively to family policy and to practice compromising. Teenagers who take part in family decision-making are more likely to feel comfortable making wise choices independently.
Recognize that everyone experiences failure. Reiterate the significance of effort, even if the final outcome is disappointing. Teens who can cope better with failure are more likely to take positive risks, and to appreciate the learning process of trial and error.
Accurately attribute success and failure to their true causes. Teens with the greatest sense of self-efficacy have learned to attribute their success—or lack-thereof—to internal, variable factors. That is, they accept that their actions and choices led to the outcome, and if they make different choices, the outcome may improve.
Work with teens to set reasonably high expectations. Expecting perfection only sets teens up for constant failure, which can undermine self-efficacy. Instead, set goals for improvement or maintaining stellar performance. Acknowledge teens who achieve their self-expectations.
Parents who work to build their teens’ sense of self-efficacy will help their teens to feel capable to meet the unique challenges of adolescence, and ultimately to address the pitfalls and obstacles of adulthood. Building self-efficacy fosters teen’s sense of independence and autonomy.
The information is provided for general reference purposes. It does not constitute medical or other professional advice and should not be used as a substitute for the medical care and advice of your child and adolescent psychiatrist or other physician.
