SOCIAL ORIGINS OF SELF-REGULATORY COMPETENCE

This article reviews the social origins of students' development of se lf-regulatory skill with special emphasis on observational learning th rough modeling. A social cognitive perspective on self-regulation is p resented. In this view, students' academic competence develops initial ly from social sources of academic skill and subsequently shifts to se lf sources in a series of 4 levels: observational, imitative, self-con trolled, and self-regulated. The effects of models on observers depend in part on perceptions of self-efficacy, or beliefs about one's capab ilities to learn or perform designated behaviors. Research on social i nfluences is reviewed, and includes factors such as cognitive modeling , coping and mastery models, self-modeling, learning goals, and progre ss feedback. Related theoretical perspectives are discussed along with suggestions for future research.