Abstract
This study examined the structure of a construct generally labeled teacher efficacy. A sample of 342 prospective and experienced teachers was administered an efficacy questionnaire adapted from the research of Gibson and Dembo (1984). Factor analytic procedures with varimax rotation were used to generate a two-factor solution that accounted for 32 % of the variance in scale scores. Contrary to previous research, these factors corresponded not to a personal versus teaching efficacy distinction, but instead to a simpler internal versus external distinction, similar to locus-of-control measures of causal attribution. Implications of these findings for past and future research involving this construct are discussed.
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