Understanding the Role of Self‐Efficacy in Engineering Education

Abstract

The engineering professor's role is dualistic in the sense that not only must s/he create an academic environment conducive to the acquisition of course content but must also prepare students to become practicing professionals. This dualism requires that the professor both motivate good study habits as well as build within students the confidence that they have the requisite capability to perform actual engineering. Self-efficacy, simply defined as one's self-judgment concerning capability, has been shown to be an important mediating factor in cognitive motivation. This paper describes the motivating role of the professor, theories of motivation, the role of self-efficacy in motivation, and guiding principles that can be used to enhance self-efficacy in engineering students. These principles can serve as guidelines in designing instructional delivery strategies that motivate engineering students to engage in behaviors conducive to becoming value-added practitioners.

Developing a Learning Module to Enhance Motivation and Self-Efficacy of Students Participating in Multinational Design Projects

“…Distal goals that reach far into the future provide a general, but weak, motivation for performance, proximal sub-goals that provide immediate indicators of success and that support the ultimate distal goal provide a greater source of motivation. Thus, far-reaching goals for students should be partitioned into sub-goals that stimulate performances leading to the accomplishment of the sub-goals and ultimately the distal goal itself 18 . This approach will allow increasing self-efficacy of students and further affecting their motivation.…”

“…If individuals must expend a great amount of time and effort to accomplish a goal, then they are more likely to choose an activity that they feel capable of performing successfully and that will lead to a valued outcome rather than wasting their time in a self-perceived futile endeavor. However, distal goals that are perceived to be beyond capability may still be adopted if proximal sub-goals are created within one's range of selfefficacy 18 . The accomplishment of correctly set sub-goals can enhanced self-efficacy (by mastery current activities), which will lead to increasing students' commitment to the larger, distal goal.…”

“…This theory describes the motivating influence of how an individual attributes causes of past successes and failures thereby affecting future choices of behaviors 18 . If a person attributes the success of a past performance to hard work or a failure to a lack of effort, then that same person is more likely to engage in a similar performance in the future as the need arises.…”

“…Effort attributions are based upon whether ability is perceived as being of static or dynamic proportions 19 . If ability is perceived to be static and temporally stable, then a high effort is perceived as an indicator of low self-efficacy; however, if ability is perceived to be dynamic and capable of influence, then ability is enhanced with effort with a concomitant increase in selfefficacy 18 .…”

Board # 19 : Expanding Engineering through an S-STEM Program

“…We included the shadowing activity in our S-STEM program in an effort to improve participants' confidence and self-efficacy. As noted by Ponton et al [2], "vicarious experiences", such as shadowing and observing, can serve as significant contributors in the enhancement of self-efficacy.…”