Self-efficacy has become a central explanatory variable in work behavior, yet little is known about how it is formed and how it changes. Rather than being the simple direct effects model, which is widely accepted, it is proposed that trait anxiety and feedback sign interact to affect self-efficacy. It is also proposed that, due to selection effects, trait anxiety exists as a vulnerability of self-efficacy in situations with low barriers to exit, rather than as an interacting variable. The results of a quasi-experimental field study supported both propositions.
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