PERCEPTIONS OF EFFICACY: ANTECEDENTS AND CONSEQUENCES OF EFFICACY AMONG STAFF IN JUVENILE CORRECTIONS

Research suggests that perceived job efficacy may be an important construct to consider when trying to understand the effects of work environment and other variables on staff attitudes and behavior. Despite the importance of efficacy, however, it has received little attention in previous studies; instead, most research has focused on other work environment variables or job characteristics and their effect on correctional workers. In order to partially bridge this gap in the literature and gain a better understanding of efficacy, the present study examined potential antecedents and consequences of this variable through an exploration of two research questions: first, how is efficacy affected by a selection of demographic and work environment variables, and second, how does efficacy affect various organizational factors? Efficacy was thus examined as both a dependent and an independent variable to uncover its potential antecedents and consequences. It was hypothesized that staff perceptions of efficacy would be affected by both personal characteristic and work environment variables, and would then directly and indirectly affect various organizational factors. To test these hypotheses, a model depicting proposed antecedents and consequences of efficacy was developed and subsequently tested through multivariate regression analyses. Literature on job demands and resources, mature coping, and social cognitive theory, as well as empirical research on efficacy and related work environment and organizational variables, was used to inform this model and provide a theoretical foundation for the present study. Results of this research indicate that a variety of work environment and demographic variables may shape staff perceptions of efficacy in the workplace, and that efficacy may, in turn, effect levels of job satisfaction and organizational commitment among staff; efficacy may also motivate mature coping and lead to other positive workplace outcomes.