Using the Knowledge‐and‐Appraisal Personality Architecture to Predict Physically Active Leisure Self‐Efficacy in University Students1

• Published in: Journal of applied social psychology Vol. 39; no. 8; pp. 1913 - 1927
• Main Author: Wise, James B.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Malden, USA Blackwell Publishing Inc 01.08.2009; Wiley Subscription Services, Inc
• Subjects: Leisure
• ISSN: 0021-9029; 1559-1816
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1559-1816.2009.00509.x

Although self‐efficacy is a construct found throughout research literature, little is known about the psychological mechanisms that give rise to perceptions of personal confidence. This situation is changing as a result of the introduction of the knowledge‐and‐appraisal personality architecture (KAPA; Cervone, 2004), a theory proposed to explain the origins of self‐efficacy percepts. In the present study, KAPA's framework was utilized to predict university students' self‐efficacy toward 3 physically demanding leisure activities. The results support the theory's validity. Confidence was strongly related to how personal characteristics were thought to influence performance of a leisure activity. Self‐efficacy was significantly higher when personal attributes were thought to help with performance vs. when attributes were believed to hinder performance.