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Self-Efficacy Enhancement
Self-efficacy, a component of social cognitive theory, describes an individual's perception regarding his/her abilities to carry out actions necessary to perform certain behaviors (eg, making changes in diet or lifestyle).20 Perceived self-efficacy is a major determinant of performance independent of an individual's actual underlying skill.20 The strength of perceived self-efficacy is particularly important, as individuals are more likely to both initiate a behavior and continue their efforts until success is achieved if their perceived self-efficacy is higher.20 Thus enhancement of an individual's perceived self-efficacy can be incorporated into interventions to improve the likelihood of successful behavior change. Bandura's theory suggests 4 sources of self-efficacy that can be drawn on and incorporated into intervention strategies to enhance self-efficacy.82 The source with the greatest potential for increasing self-efficacy, mastery experiences, entails having a person successfully achieve a goal that is reasonable and proximal; for example, substituting fruit for a high-calorie dessert or being able to walk 1 mile. A second source, vicarious experience, consists of the individual witnessing someone who is similar in capability successfully perform the desired task; for example, observing patients exercise and improve their physical function in cardiac rehabilitation or watching a nonprofessional prepare a healthy meal. A third source, verbal persuasion, entails the provider persuading the person that he/she believes in the person's capability to perform the task. This is the weakest source for improving self-efficacy, but can be implemented via telephone or other electronic modes. The fourth source, physiological feedback, entails interpreting to the individual the meaning of different symptoms associated with behavior change. Examples include explaining that experiencing fewer symptoms with exertion is related to regular participation in a physical activity program or that feeling less fatigued or more comfortable is related to weight loss.20 An extensive body of evidence indicates that self-efficacy influences behavior change across all the behavior domains related to CVD risk reduction.83–92 Self-efficacy enhancements were incorporated into the interventions of several of the studies that yielded favorable outcomes.
The first and foremost source [of self-efficacy] is through Mastery Experiences because they provide the most authentic evidence that one can muster what it takes to succeed. In other words, seeing that one can succeed fuels our confidence that one can continue to succeed; it builds our self-efficacy. Nothing is more powerful than having a direct and positive experience of mastery to increase self-efficacy. And importantly, while success in one domain clearly builds confidence in that domain, it also contributes to general self-efficacy and builds broader confidence. For example, having success in one domain, such as being able to accomplish a health-related goal, leads to success in other domains such as interpersonal relationships. In other words, successes build a robust belief in one’s personal efficacy in a range of domains.
The power of Mastery Experiences to increase self-efficacy depends upon a number of factors, including the difficulty of the task, the pattern of success, the amount of effort expended, the amount of external aid received, and the circumstances under which the task is performed. Tasks where perceived difficulty slightly exceeds the participant’s confidence provide meaningful challenge and promote efficacy beliefs. To have a resilient sense of self-efficacy requires experience in overcoming obstacles through effort and perseverance. The art is to find the right balance between challenge and achievability. Tasks should have just the right amount of challenge to make them difficult but not impossible for the individual to accomplish.
-Neal Kaufman, MD, MPH
VegSeekingFit wrote:Hi!!
Yay, we have JaBee and Drew joining us for August... Welcome!!!
I'm in too...
Have a great week everyone!!!
Stephanie
Noella wrote:Drew - Welcome back! I wish you the very best in the weeks ahead as you prepare for your upcoming surgery. Fifteen pounds - YOU can do this! Enjoy eating lots of vegetables, whole grains, and legumes and as you said, stay away from processed and ultra-processed vegan foods.
Mark Cooper wrote:Drew*# - You've gotten started! That can sometimes be the hardest step to take, right? I think committing to not bringing any more non adherent foods into the house is definitely a sensible step to take. It sounds like you have breakfast well sorted out, that just leaves the other two meals to be planned for, prepped and solved. Using SNAP meals for some or all of those is a great strategy. With ~5 of the 10 behaviors under control, bring your focus toward the remaining 5, perhaps tackling those that feel most within reach and attainable, and building from those successes. Enjoy the yoga!
Lizzy_F wrote:Questions: I’m curious how much fruit other people are eating. I’m also curious to know if there are other non-salad eaters in the group and if so, how do you do your meal sequencing.
Wfpb2020 wrote:To Mark, Wildgoose and Jeff,
Is it possible to come back to the Maximum Weight loss group? I was on it a year + ago and would like to recommit. Do I still just post on Fridays? is there anything else I need to do/ Thank you for your patience with me.
Gina
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