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The present study investigated the relationship between self-esteem, coping strategies and changes in self-efficacy following defeat in a tennis tiebreak competition. Ninety-one national standard junior tennis players participated in a tennis tiebreak competition. Participants completed the Rosenberg Self-esteem scale (Rosenberg, 1965), the Modified COPE (Crocker & Graham, 1995), and a 6-item Self-efficacy scale designed to assess confidence to achieve success in tennis tiebreak competition. All measures were completed shortly before competition. Participants completed the same Self-efficacy items following defeat and prior to the next tiebreak competition. Players completed two tiebreak competitions yielding 59 losing players. Prior to data analysis, Self-esteem scores were coded as either a High Selfesteem group (n = 35) or a Low Self-esteem group (n = 24) based on a median split. Repeated measures ANOVA to compare changes in Self-efficacy scores by Self-esteem groups indicated that Self efficacy reduced significantly more in the Low Self-esteem group. Further analysis revealed that raladaptive coping strategies such as "Behavioral disengagement" and "Self blame" were associated with low Self-esteem. It is suggested that interventions to reduce the potentially debilitating effects of failure on self-efficacy should focus on utilization of adaptive coping strategies, particular among individuals reporting low Self-esteem.
Self-efficacy has been described as the guardian angel of successful performance (Terry, 1989). There has been a great deal of research support for a positive relationship between selfefficacy and performance in a number of different contexts including sport (Bandura, 1997; Moritz, Feltz, Fahrbach, & Mack, 2000; Stajkovic & Luthans, 1998). Self-efficacy is defined as the levels of confidence individuals have in their ability to execute courses of action or attain specific performance outcomes (Bandura, 1977, 1986, 1997). Personal efficacy expectations are proposed to influence initiating behavior and how much effort will be applied to attain a successful outcome in the face of difficulties and setbacks (Bandura, 1977, 1986, 1997). Metaanalysis results for self-efficacy and sport performance relationships lend support to its predictive power (Moritz et al., 2000).
Bandura (1977, 1986, 1997) suggested that self-efficacy judgments derive from the cognitive processing of information from four principle sources; 1) performance accomplishments (Feltz, Landers, & Raeder, 1979, George, 1994), 2) vicarious experiences (George, Feltz, & Chase, 1992, Gould & Weiss, 1981), 3) verbal persuasion (Feltz & Riessinger, 1990), and 4)...