This theory, introduced by Albert Bandura (1977), a Canadian psychologist and professor at Stanford University, explores the concept of agentivity, which refers to an individual's ability to act independently. A vital characteristic of this theory is self-efficacy.
Self-efficacy is the belief in one's capacity to accomplish goals and take action.
Self-efficacy refers to people's beliefs about their ability to achieve specific performances. It influences individuals' choices regarding activities and environments, their commitment to pursuing goals, their persistence in efforts, and their emotional responses to obstacles.1
Various factors can influence the feeling of self-efficacy:
- Past experiences, both successful and unsuccessful,
- Observing and comparing one's own experiences with similar experiences of others.
- Feedback and recognition.
- Physiological and emotional state.
One of the strengths of this approach is its emphasis on the social influences of the environment and the people close to an individual on their motivation levels.
This is a significant shift, as many theories have traditionally focused on internal factors such as drives, desires, cravings, and goals, neglecting social influences.
It would have been logical for theories of motivation in the workplace to pay closer attention to these social influences and incorporate them into their explanatory models and examine the specific influence processes within groups. Surprisingly, researchers interested in work motivation have not explored this area, and we can only hope that further exploration will enhance our understanding of the complex mechanisms underlying this phenomenon.2
Moving forward, we will continue to explore the mechanisms that influence motivation.