Misbeliefs in one's inefficacy may retard development of the very subskills upon which more complex performances depend

Measures of self-precept must be tailored to the domain of psychological functioning being explored.

Perceived self-inefficacy predicts avoidance of academic activities whereas anxiety does not

People who underestimate their capabilities also bear costs, although, as already noted, these are more likely to take self-limiting rather than aversive forms. By failing to cultivate personal potentialities and constricting their activities, such persons cut themselves off from many rewarding experiences. Should they attempt tasks having evaluative significance, they create internal obstacles to effective performance by approaching them with unnerving self-doubts

If there is any characteristic that is distinctly human, it is the capability for reflective self-consciousness.

Students judge how well they might do in a chemistry course from knowing how peers, who performed comparably to them in physics, fared in chemistry

Through their capacity to manipulate symbols and to engage in reflective thought, people can generate novel ideas and innovative actions that transcend their past experiences