Self-Efficacy and the Community

Teachers, coaches, youth group leaders who have high self-efficacy are more willing to experiment with new ideas and teaching strategies. They have high expectations and set high goals for children and exert more into caring and involvement with children. Therefore, self-efficacy affects choices, goals, effort and persistence.

Parents, siblings, teachers, coaches and other people in a child's community can help elevate self-efficacy in many ways.  They can set up easy to attain situations so that children can learn how to complete a task by first completing smaller sections of tasks and breaking the project down to something that is more manageable. Adults can model appropriate behavior that helps motivate children to participate in activities and succeed in them. The more encouragement a child receives at home and school the more self-efficacy they'll have. The more self-efficacy a child has the more likely they'll grow up to be successful happy adults.

When my child was growing up she had youth leaders who helped her set goals. They helped her write them down and then they framed it so she could put it in her room and see the goals she set for herself. It reflected her choices, her goals and what she would do to accomplish them. Some of them were still in college themselves and helped set the goal of college for herself and the importance of education. They supported her in her choices and goals and helped her achieve them in ways that only they could because she felt how much they cared and saw they were willing to help her achieve her goals.

The building of self-efficacy needs the help, encouragement, love and support of many.