Exploring the context-specificity of teacher self-efficacy
A multilevel analysis of class characteristics in secondary schools
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21752182 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Janina Täschner (0000-0002-0221-493X, Technical University of Munich, corresponding author), Doris Holzberger (0000-0001-6535-289X, Technical University of Munich), Terrence D Jorgensen (0000-0001-5111-6773, University of Amsterdam), Marjolein Zee (0000-0003-2523-8755, Erasmus University Rotterdam) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Volume | 29 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Publication date | 2026-06-22 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Social Psychology of Education (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1573-1928 • E-ISSN: 1381-2890 |
| Publisher | Springer Science and Business Media LLC (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1007/s11218-026-10239-5 |
| OpenAlex | W7165523978 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 64 |
Teacher self-efficacy (TSE) is supposed to positively affect teachers’ well-being, instructional quality and students’ motivation. However, the extent to which secondary school teachers’ TSE is shaped by their social teaching environment—particularly the different classes they teach—remains largely unexplored. This pre-registered study exploratorily investigated to what extent TSE can be considered a context-specific construct that varies within teachers across classes. Intraclass correlations indicated substantial within-teacher variation for TSE related to student engagement (ICC = 0.40) and classroom management (ICC = 0.37), while TSE for instructional strategies appeared relatively stable (ICC = 0.61). Multilevel regression models, considering the data from 1,326 students in 74 classes taught by 26 teachers, revealed negative relations between class misbehavior and TSE beliefs across all domains of TSE. All other class characteristics (i.e., students’ emotional and behavioral engagement, percentage of boys in class, mean grade) were less consistent or not significantly related to TSE. These exploratory findings call for larger replications to further understand whether conventional approaches to measuring and promoting teacher self-efficacy should be challenged
Exploratory analysis · Multilevel model · Regression analysis · Sociology of Education · Early Childhood Education and Development · Educational Environments and Student Outcomes · Teacher Education and Leadership Studies
Talis 2018 Results (Volume I)
Talis 2013 Results
The multilevel latent covariate model
Teachers’ professional competence and wellbeing
Teachers’ self-efficacy, personality, and teaching effectiveness
Teacher self-efficacy profiles
Engagement and disaffection in the classroom
Teacher Efficacy Research 1998–2009
Teacher self-efficacy as a long-term predictor of instructional quality in the classroom
Robustness issues in multilevel regression analysis
Emotion transmission in the classroom revisited
Latent Variable Centering of Predictors and Mediators in Multilevel and Time-Series Models
Classroom Management Self-Efficacy and Burnout
Emotional transmission in the classroom
Self-efficacy as a predictor of commitment to the teaching profession
Reliability estimation in a multilevel confirmatory factor analysis framework.
Dimensions of teacher self-efficacy and relations with strain factors, perceived collective teacher efficacy, and teacher burnout.
MplusAutomation
The Effect of Small Sample Size on Two-Level Model Estimates
Self-efficacy in classroom management, classroom disturbances, and emotional exhaustion
Toward a theoretical model to understand teacher emotions and teacher burnout in the context of student misbehavior
How teachers’ self-efficacy is related to instructional quality
Exploring the association between teachers’ perceived student misbehaviour and emotional exhaustion
Teacher Self-Efficacy and Its Effects on Classroom Processes, Student Academic Adjustment, and Teacher Well-Being
Sources of Method Bias in Social Science Research and Recommendations on How to Control It
Effects on teachers' self-efficacy and job satisfaction
School Engagement
Teacher Efficacy
The role of instructional leadership in increasing teacher self-efficacy
The impact of teachers’ self-efficacy and classroom externalising problem behaviours on emotional exhaustion
Teachers' social goals and classroom engagement
“Yes, I Can!” A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Intervention Studies Promoting Teacher Self-Efficacy
Don’t blame the teacher? The need to account for classroom characteristics in evaluations of teaching quality
The relationship between teacher efficacy and students' academic achievement
Relationships between student engagement and academic achievement
Situational fluctuations in student teachers’ self-efficacy and its relation to perceived teaching experiences and cooperating teachers’ discourse elements during the teaching practicum
The effects of teacher competence on student outcomes in elementary science education
An international perspective on teacher self-efficacy
Within-teacher predictors of teacher efficacy
Teacher efficacy
Teachers' attitudes towards ethnic minority students
Contextual Effects on the Self-perceived Efficacy of High School Teachers
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |