Does Self-Efficacy Theory Predict Physical Educators' Behavior Toward Inclusion?

Background/Purpose Bandura (1997) proposed that self-efficacy beliefs are effective predictors of behavior and are related to the level of challenge that exists in the context of a task. Many studies in the field of APE have lacked an investigation into teacher behavior toward inclusion, as this is a difficult construct to measure (Kozub & Linert, 2003). The purpose of this study was to investigate teacher self-reported behaviors and to determine if self-efficacy and perceived challenges predict the behaviors of physical educators toward the inclusion of students with autism.

Method The Physical Educators' Self-efficacy Toward Including Students with Disabilities-Autism (PESEISD-A) instrument was completed by a sample of 236 physical educators in the U.S.

Analysis/Results A multiple regression analysis revealed that the combination of self-efficacy and perceived challenges significantly predicted teacher self-reported behavior, accounting for 20.5% of the variance in behavior (p<.001, Cohen's f²=.258). Self-efficacy explained a significant unique amount of variance in self-reported behavior (R²=.139, standardized beta =.460, p<.001). Teachers reported their most frequent behaviors when including students with autism to be creating a safe environment (M=4.39, SD=1.10), managing behaviors (M=3.91, SD=1.12), and motivating the student (M=3.91, SD=1.12).

Conclusions While results supported the framework of Bandura's (1997) self-efficacy theory and the ability of self-efficacy beliefs to predict behavior, a relatively large portion of variance remained unexplained. Further research should explore if self-reported behaviors are an accurate measure of actual behavior in regard to performing tasks associated with inclusion.