Abstract

Self-efficacy is an important predictor of learning and achievement. By definition, self-efficacy requires a task-specific assessment, in which students are asked to evaluate whether they can solve concrete tasks. An underlying assumption in previous research into such assessments was that self-efficacy is a one-dimensional construct. However, empirical evidence for this assumption is lacking, and research on students’ performance suggests that it depends on various task characteristics. The present study explores the potential multi-dimensionality of self-efficacy in the topic of linear functions. More specifically, we investigate how three task characteristics – the representational format, embedding in a real-life context, or the required operation – are related to students’ self-efficacy. We asked 8th and 9th graders to evaluate their self-efficacy on specific linear function tasks which systematically varied along the three dimensions of task characteristics. Using confirmatory factor analysis, we found that a two-dimensional model which includes the task characteristic of real-life context fitted the data better than other two-dimensional models or a one-dimensional model. These results suggest that self-efficacy with linear functions is empirically separable with respect to tasks with vs. without a real-life context. This means that in their self-evaluation of linear function tasks students particularly rely on whether or not the linear function task is embedded in a real-life context. This study highlights the fact that even within a specific content domain students’ self-efficacy can be considered a multi-dimensional construct.