The profile of an effective instrumental and vocal music teacher includes many personal and professional dimensions. Among them, teacher self-efficacy plays a key role and influences the evaluation of music teachers’ effectiveness. Recent studies have identified several factors that affect one’s self-assessment of efficacy. However, a comprehensive model of the predictors of music teachers’ self-efficacy still does not exist. The aim of the current study was to identify factors that affect music teacher self-efficacy using a quantitative approach. Three self-report questionnaires were administered to 160 instrumental and vocal music teachers in Italy. Data about their beliefs on musical ability, teacher self-efficacy, and social skills were collected to define a predictive model of teachers’ self-efficacy using a stepwise regression analysis. In addition, an ANOVA was performed to examine group differences in music teacher self-efficacy and intercorrelations among questionnaire scales were computed. The findings have shown that a general score of music teacher self-efficacy can be predicted by a multidimensional model, including music teachers’ personal and professional traits, such as social skills, beliefs about musical ability, teaching experience, and gender. Moreover, differences in specific aspects of teacher self-efficacy emerged in relation to participants’ gender and level of expertise. The impact of these results on music teachers’ education is discussed.
ArrindellW. A.de GrootP. M.WalburgJ. A. (1984). De Schaal voor Iinterpersoonilijk Gedrag (SIG): Handleiding deel I [The Scale for Interpersonal Behavior (SIB): Test manual part I]. Lisse, the Netherlands: Swets & Zeitlinger.
3.
ArrindellW. A.NotaL.SanavioE.SicaC.SoresiS. (2004). Test SIB – Valutazione del comportamento interpersonale e assertivo [Test SIB – Assessment of Interpersonal and Assertive Behavior]. Trento, Italy: Edizioni Erickson.
4.
ArrindellW. A.Van der EndeJ. (1985). Cross-sample invariance of the structure of self-reported distress and difficulty in assertiveness: Experiences with the scale for interpersonal behaviour. Advances in Behavior Research and Therapy, 7, 205–243.
5.
BanduraA. (1977). Self-efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavioral change. Psychological Review, 84(2), 191–215.
6.
BautistaA.Pérez EcheverríaM. D. P.PozoJ. I. (2009). Music performance teachers’ conceptions about learning and instruction: A descriptive study of Spanish piano teachers. Psychology of Music, 38(1), 85–106.
7.
BergeeM. J. (1992). The relationship between music educator majors’ personality profiles, other education majors’ profiles, and selected indicators of music teaching success. Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education, 112, 5–15.
8.
BiasuttiM. (2010). Investigating trainee music teachers’ beliefs on musical abilities and learning: A quantitative study. Music Education Research, 12(1), 47–69.
9.
BiasuttiM. (2012). Teaching beliefs: A comparison between Italian primary and secondary school trainee teachers. Journal of Education for Teaching; International Research and Pedagogy, 38(3), 231–244.
10.
BiasuttiM. (2013). Orchestra rehearsal strategies: conductor and performer views. Musicae Scientiae, 17(1), 57–71.
11.
ButlerA. (2001). Pre-service music teachers’ conceptions of teaching effectiveness, microteaching experience, and teaching performance. Journal of Research in Music Education, 49(3), 258–272.
12.
ChengE. K.-W.DurrantC. (2007). An investigation into effective string teaching in a variety of learning contexts: A single case study. British Journal of Music Education, 24(2), 191–205.
13.
CohenJ. (1988). Statistical power analysis for behavioral sciences (2ª ed.). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
14.
ColpritE. J. (2000). Observation and analysis of Suzuki string teaching. Journal of Research in Music Education, 48(3), 206–221.
15.
DavidsonJ. W.MooreD. G.SlobodaJ. A.HoweM. J. A. (1998). Characteristics of music teachers and the progress of young instrumentalists. Journal of Research in Music Education, 46(1), 141–160.
16.
DeciE. L.RyanR. M. (2000). The “what” and “why” of goal pursuits: Human needs and the self-determination of behavior. Psychological Inquiry, 11, 227–268.
17.
DweckC. S. (2000). Self-theories: Their role in motivation, personality, and development. London, UK: Taylor & Francis.
18.
EllisP. D. (2010). The essential guide to effect size: Statistical power, meta-analysis, and the interpretation of research results. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
19.
EvansP. (2015). Self-determination theory: An approach to motivation in music education. Musicae Scientiae, 19(1), 65–83.
20.
HallamS.CreechA.PapageorgiI.GomesT.RintaT.VarvarigouM.LanipekunJ. (2016). Changes in motivation as expertise develops: Relationships with musical aspirations. Musicae Scientiae, 20(4), 528–550.
21.
HamannD. L.BakerD. S.McAllisterP. A. (2000). Factors affecting university music students’ perceptions of lesson quality and teaching effectiveness. Journal of Research in Music Education, 48(2), 102–113.
22.
HamannD. L.LineburghN.PaulS. (1998). Teaching effectiveness and social skill development. Journal of Research in Music Education, 46(1), 87–101.
23.
HattieJ. A. C. (2009). Visible learning: A synthesis of 800+ meta-analyses on achievement. Oxford, UK: Routledge.
24.
López-ÍñiguezG.PozoJ. I. (2016). Analysis of constructive practice in instrumental music education: Case study with an expert cello teacher. Teaching and Teacher Education, 60, 97–107.
25.
JuchniewiczJ. (2010). The influence of social intelligence on effective music teaching. Journal of Research in Music Education, 58(3), 276–293.
26.
KellyS. N. (2007). High school band students’ perceptions of effective teaching. Journal of Band Research, 42(2), 57–70.
27.
KlassenR. M.TzeV. M. C. (2014). Teacher’s self-efficacy, personality, and teaching effectiveness: A meta-analysis. Educational Research Review, 12, 59–76.
28.
KoutsoupidouT. (2005). Improvisation in the English primary music classroom: Teachers’ perceptions and practices. Music Education Research, 7(3), 363–381.
29.
KüpersE.van DijkM.McPhersonG.van GeertP. (2014). A dynamic model that links skill acquisition with self-determination in instrumental music lessons. Musicae Scientiae, 18(1), 17–34.
30.
LehmannA. C.SlobodaJ. A.WoodyR. H. (2007). Psychology for musicians: Understanding and acquiring the skills. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
31.
MadsenC. K. (1990). Teacher intensity in relationship to music education. Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education, 104, 38–46.
32.
MaherM. L.PintrichP. R.LinnenbrickE. A. (2002). Motivation and achievement. In ColwellR.RichardsonC. (Eds.), The new handbook of research on music teaching and learning (pp. 348–372). New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
33.
McCormickJ.McPhersonG. E. (2003). The role of self-efficacy in a musical performance: An exploratory structural equation analysis. Psychology of Music, 31(1), 37–51.
34.
McPhersonG. (2012). Using self-regulation to unlock musical success. In MornellA. (Ed.), Art in motion II: Motor skills, motivation and musical practice (pp. 225–240). Frankfurt am Main, Germany: Peter Lang.
35.
McPhersonG. E.McCormickJ. (2006). Self-efficacy and music performance. Psychology of Music, 34(3), 325–339.
36.
MillsJ.SmithJ. (2003). Teacher’s beliefs about effective instrumental teaching in schools and higher education. British Journal of Music Education, 20(1), 5–27.
37.
PatrickJ.SmartR. M. (1998). An empirical evaluation of teacher effectiveness: The emergence of three critical factors. Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education, 23(2), 165–178.
38.
PersellinD. (2003). Teaching song to young children: What do music-teacher educators say?General Music Today, 17(1), 18–27.
39.
RitchieL.WilliamonA. (2011). Measuring distinct types of musical self-efficacy. Psychology of Music, 39(3), 328–344.
40.
RyanR. M.DeciE. L. (2000). Self-determination theory and the facilitation of intrinsic motivation, social development, and well-being. American Psychologist, 55, 68–78.
41.
SchmidtM. (1998). Defining “good” music teaching: Four student teachers’ beliefs and practices. Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education, 138, 19–46.
42.
TeachoutD. J. (2001). The relationship between personality and the teaching effectiveness of music student teachers. Psychology of Music, 29(2), 179–192.
43.
ZhukovK. (2012). Teaching strategies and gender in higher education instrumental studios. International Journal of Music Education, 30(1), 32–45.
