Abstract
M.A.
Over the years it has become clear that self-efficacy beliefs play a significant role
in various domains of human functioning. According to Bandura (1986)
individuals possess a self-system that enables them to exercise a measure of
control over their thoughts, feelings and actions. This implies that the construct of
self-efficacy has a pervasive influence on human functioning as it is seen to
influence the way in which people feel, think and act. The literature has also
shown that the physiological dimension of the self also stands to be affected by
efficacy beliefs. One of the goal's of this research was to investigate the role of
self-effiCacy as a mediating factor in the stress response, and how the various
facets of self are affected by and affect an individual's perception of and
response to a stressful situation. The stressful condition refers to the semester
tests and how the students predicted their academic perfonnance under these
conditions of stress.
The design of the study was quantitative, and the sample comprised of 49
undergraduate psychology students. They completed a series of questionnaires
a week before the first condition of stress, and their blood pressure was also
measured at this time. Their blood pressure was also measured pretest and
posttest at both conditions of stress. By means of a cluster analysis the group
was divided into two homogeneous groups (high self-efficacy group, N=27) and
(a low self-efficacy group, N=22) and this was followed by a detailed statistical
analysis.
The results revealed that the high self-efficacy group showed a bigger decline in
diastolic and systolic blood pressure than the low self-efficacy group once the
stressful condition had passed. Therefore the high self-efficacy group made a
quicker physical recovery than the low self-efficacy group. It thus appears that
the stress response of the more efficacious group may have been mediated by
their beliefs of coping efficacy.
Furthennore, the high self-efficacy group was more accurate in predicting their
academic perfonnance than the low self-efficacy group. Even though the more
efficacious group did not perfonn as well as the less efficacious group, they
showed more optimism, and their prediction suggests that they are able to
realistically appraise what they are capable of, since the test result was similar to
what they had predicted. This ability to predict perfonnance is vital, as a major
function of thought is to predict events and to exercise control over these events.
This sense of control can be regarded as a self-confident view of an individual's
capability to deal with certain life stressors (Schwarzer, 1997).
Even though this study has highlighted some interesting trends relating to selfefficacy
and the stress response, further research is needed to gain a more
comprehensive understanding of this dynamic relationship.