一个人相信他们组织和实施完成一个目标所需的行动的能力被称为自我效能。那些对自己执行行为的能力有信心的人有非常强的有效性信念。这些信念正在影响我们的个人情绪反应和选择，动机和模式，因此它们被认为对我们的生活目标和成就有非常重要的影响。 （Bandura A.Apychological Review.1977）。
例如，对他们的能力有很高信心的人，认为困难的任务作为精通的挑战，而不是看到他们的威胁要避免。这些人为自己设定了挑战性的目标，并继续致力于他们。如果他们失败，他们加强和保持努力，而不是放弃。较高的自我效能也产生个人成就，减少压力，并且易于抑郁。
相比之下，自我效能低的人们避开挑战性任务，他们认为这是个人威胁。他们放松努力，在面临困难时迅速放弃，集中精力于如何成功。自我效能低的人不需要太多的失败，他们失去对自己的能力的信心。他们可以很容易得到压力，陷入抑郁症。 （Bandura.A Encyclopedia of human behavior 1994）。
我们可以通过四个来源影响自我效能，包括绩效成就，替代经验，口头说服和情绪唤醒。
A person’s belief about their ability to organize and carry out courses of action needed to accomplish a goal is known as self- efficacy. Those persons, who are confident in their capability to execute a behavior, have very strong efficacy beliefs. These beliefs are influencing our personal emotional reactions and choices, motivation, and patters, therefore they are considered to have a very significant impact on our goals and accomplishments in life. (Bandura. A. Psychological Review. 1977).
For example, people with high confidence in their capabilities, consider difficult tasks as challenges to be proficient at instead of seeing them s threats to be avoided. These kind of people set challenging goals for themselves and continue to be committed to them. If they fail, they heighten and keep up their efforts, rather than giving up. Higher self- efficacy also produces personal accomplishments and reduces stress, and vulnerability to depression.
In contrast, people who have low self- efficacy shy away from challenging tasks, which they view as personal threats. They loosen their efforts and give up quickly when faced with difficulties rather that concentrate on how to perform successfully. People with low self- efficacy not require much failure for them to lose faith in their competence. They can easily get stressed and fall into depression. (Bandura. A. Encyclopedia of human behavior 1994).
We can influence self- efficacy through four sources, which include performance accomplishments, vicarious experience, verbal persuasion, and emotional arousal.