Abstract
Research has suggested that the efficacy-performance relationship is reciprocal over seasons (e.g., Myers, Payment, & Feltz, 2004) and across trials (e.g., Feltz, Chow, & Hepler, 2008). However, research on this relationship within continuous sport tasks has not supported a reciprocal relationship (LaForge & Sullivan, 2010). The purpose of the present study was to examine the efficacy-performance relationship within an uninterrupted basketball task. Sixty-three participants (38 male, 25 female) were timed while dribbling a basketball around a series of pylons and simultaneously responding to a self-efficacy measure. Path analyses using residualized scores revealed a reciprocal relationship between efficacy and timed performance, with self-efficacy (p < .01; ?s ranging -.18 to -.47) and previous performance in the task (p < .01; ?s ranging -.85 to -.95) shown to be consistent predictors of present performance. Past performance (p < .05; ?s ranging -.24 to -.39) and past efficacy (p < .01; ?s ranging -.43 to -.62) were also predictors of self-efficacy beliefs. Consistent with previous research (i.e., Feltz et al., 2008), these findings suggest that the efficacy-performance relationship is reciprocal within a continuous sport task. The present results extend prior knowledge that, even within short temporal periods (i.e., uninterrupted trials less than one minute in length), previous performance and self-efficacy are strong and consistent predictors of sport performance.
