Self-Confidence Theory

A common conception of a confident person is one who is successful, sociable, and determined. Logically, confidence has become increasingly more attractive over the years, largely due to the anticipated success that is a result of an individual with high self-confidence. Vera Andrade observed the impact of confidence on sports performance as well as addressed the importance of self-confidence models within the athletic community. The author highlighted the main points of self-confidence by elaborating upon three theories; Vealey’s, Bandura’s, and Harter’s theory. Andrade used the ideas generated from each of the theorists’ suggestions to develop a better understanding of the relation between confidence and athletic performance. Vealey’s Sport

Furthermore, Bandura explains that self-efficacy is an individual’s level of belief about their own potential. Bandura argued a separation between efficacy and confidence, stating that self-confidence was the strength of a conviction and that self-efficacy was the degree of ‘perceived confidence’ (Page 3). Harter’s theory relied heavily upon the idea that approval by admirable people in an athlete 's life can improve confidence and also increase the level of perceived confidence. This theory also presented the idea that athletes are what they think they are; therefore, athletes who see little in their abilities will show little capability. The author suggested that there is a connection between confidence and performance; however, it remains uncertain as to what is the cause for this

The author provided possible hypotheses and new questions to walk away with and also some additional information to strengthen the preconceived notions about the positive effects of confidence on an athlete. There appears to be some level of correlation between performance and confidence. Moreover, this led Andrade and numerous other curious minds to search for the source of confidence. “It should be evident that although there seems to be an association between self-confidence and athletic performance, sports science research is yet to determine if such relationship is casual in nature” (Page 5). The conclusion here is that confidence may relate to success, but it is hard to determine if this is innate or not. It is possible that confidence is learned from nurture rather than in nature. In other words, it is possible that self-confidence is something that humans have created and is something learned from experiences rather than inborn habits. It is logical to assume that self-confidence is a by-product of human judgments and is used as a tool of survival in an encourage-limited situation. Although the research at this point in time may be inconclusive, it is safe to assume that the relationship between self-confidence and athletic