The construct of self-efficacy has found widespread application in many disciplines but has only recently begun to penetrate social work literature. Self-efficacy is a person's belief in his or her ability to carry out a particular action, as distinct from his or her actual capability. The authors describe self-efficacy, discuss its sources, and illustrate methods of incorporating it into social work interventions. Social workers frequently enhance their clients’ self-efficacy by attending to and promoting clients’ perceptions of their own capabilities. Social workers can consciously select from among several channels to increase clients’ self-efficacy. Moreover, deliberate and explicit inclusion of self-efficacy interventions in practice, with evaluation of the results, can advance social work effectiveness.
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