Mediation role of self-efficacy beliefs in relation to personality traits and attributional style

Aim: The aim of this study was to investigate the mediator role of selfefficacy beliefs between neuroticism, extraversion, conscientiousness and attribution style.
This was a correlational research and data were analyzed using structured equation model (SEM). Participants included 414 men and women aged between 20- 60 years old from governmental corporations in two area of Tehran. Research tools were NEO (McCrae & Costa, 1985), Sherer's General Self-efficacy Scale (1989) and the Attribution Style Questionnaire (Peterson, Semel, Von Beayer, Abramson, Metalsky & Seligman, 1982).
Findings revealed that opimistic or pessimistic styles models had a good fit to the data. Self-efficacy had a full mediated role in relation between personality traits (neuroticism and conscientiousness) and optimistic style. The model indicated neuroticism, extraversion and conscientiousness explained %67 variance of self-efficacy and all together explained %12 variance of optimistic style. Self-efficacy had significant relation with neuroticism, conscientiousness and optimistic style. But there was no significant relationship between self-efficacy with extraversion and pessimistic style.
Considering the effect of self-efficacy, it is useful to increase self-efficacy beliefs in order to increase tendency toward optimistic attribution styles which will result in reducing neuroticism.