Self-Efficacy, Calibration, and Exam Performance in College Algebra and Calculus I

Albert Bandura's social cognitive theory first began as a means for explaining observational learning mechanisms by positing that a casual triadic reciprocality exists between individuals' behavior, environmental stimuli, and internal cognitive factors (Simon, 1999). Social cognition has since developed into a robust theory increasingly focused on explaining cognitive processes and motivational constructs such as metacognition (Schraw, 1998), self-efficacy, and self-regulation as important aspects of learners' attempts to acquire knowledge and skills (Martin, 2004). In particular, perceived self-efficacy , or judgments of one's ability to accomplish given performances in particular contexts (Bandura, 1997), is a particular focus of social cognitive research in mathematics education. Lightsey (1999) reports over 2500 hundred articles on the positive relationship between self-efficacy and achievement.