Are self-efficacy beliefs and subjective task demand related to apathy in aging?

Esposito, Fabienne; Gendolla, Guido H.E.; Van der Linden, Martial

doi:10.1080/13607863.2013.856865

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Title		Are self-efficacy beliefs and subjective task demand related to apathy in aging?
Authors		Esposito, Fabienne Gendolla, Guido H.E. Van der Linden, Martial
Published in		Aging & mental health. 2014, vol. 18, no. 4, p. 521-530
Abstract		Objective: Apathy, defined as a reduction in voluntary goal-directed behaviors (GDBs), is common in aging, but the processes underlying apathy are still unclear. Self-efficacy beliefs are likely to play a key role in GDBs, by influencing goal setting, perceived difficulty, and the necessary amount of effort to achieve goals. The aim of this study was to examine the relationships between apathy and perceived self-efficacy.Method: Sixty-three healthy elderly participants worked on a memory task without fixed performance standard ('do your best') and indicated perceived difficulty and effort investment after performing the task. They also completed two short scales assessing general self-efficacy and negative mood. In addition, a close relative of each participant completed the Initiative Interest Scale, a new questionnaire assessing apathetic manifestations in aging.Results: The main results showed that subjective task demand (i.e., perceived difficulty and estimated effort) operated as a mediator between self-efficacy beliefs and apathy. These results suggest that elderly people with low self-efficacy beliefs who face a challenge judge the task to be highly difficult and effort demanding, which might result in GDB reduction.Conclusion: These results shed new light on the processes related to apathy in aging and open up an interesting prospect for psychological interventions.
Keywords		Goal-directed behavior reduction — General self-efficacy — Perceived difficulty — Effort investment
Identifiers		DOI: 10.1080/13607863.2013.856865 PMID: 24286481
Full text		Article (Published version) (202 Kb) - Limited access to UNIGE
Structures		Faculté de psychologie et des sciences de l'éducation / Section de psychologie Centres et instituts / Centre interfacultaire en sciences affectives
Research groups		Affective sciences Geneva Motivation Lab Unité de psychopathologie et neuropsychologie cognitive (UPNC)
Citation (ISO format)		ESPOSITO, Fabienne, GENDOLLA, Guido H.E., VAN DER LINDEN, Martial. Are self-efficacy beliefs and subjective task demand related to apathy in aging?. In: Aging & mental health, 2014, vol. 18, n° 4, p. 521-530. doi: 10.1080/13607863.2013.856865 https://archive-ouverte.unige.ch/unige:35981