According to Bandura’s social cognitive theory, self-efficacy (one’s confidence in their ability to accomplish a specific task) is a major component of the decision to intervene on behalf of another person; someone with the skills to intervene may not choose to do so if they have low self-efficacy. A new study examined the relationship between self-efficacy and bystander behavior in alcohol-related emergencies among 1,095 U.S. undergraduate students. Participants completed an online survey about their alcohol consumption and related behaviors as part of a larger project on alcohol consumption. Items on the survey measured past witnessing of and past intervention in an alcohol-related emergency and likelihood of future intervention in such emergencies. Participants also reported their levels of confidence in their own abilities to intervene in emergencies. These responses were summed to create a general self-efficacy score for intervening in social situations. The researchers found approximately half of the respondents had witnessed at least one alcohol-related emergency in the past. Previous witnessing was not significantly associated with likelihood of intervening in the future, but previous intervening and self-efficacy were both significantly positively associated with likelihood of future intervening. Previous intervening was significantly positively associated with self-efficacy. The analysis also suggested self-efficacy is a partial mediator of the relationship between past and future intervening.
Take away: The results of this study indicate it may be useful for colleges to develop materials to enhance students’ abilities to identify dangerous alcohol-related situations and increase self-efficacy for intervening. The authors suggest providing students with role-playing opportunities in simulated alcohol-related emergencies as a potential mechanism to increase these skills.