Teacher Efficacy Beliefs: A Multilevel Analysis of Teacher- and School-Level Predictors in Mexico

All individuals hold beliefs about their ability to successfully perform specific tasks. These beliefs, known as self-efficacy, play a key role in guiding and motivating human behavior. In education, both teachers’ self-efficacy beliefs and the collective efficacy shared by teachers within a school have been linked to improved performance, well-being, and job satisfaction among students and educators. While these constructs have been widely studied in various countries and contexts, little is known about them in Mexico, the country with the largest Spanish-speaking population worldwide. This study is the first to examine the relationship between teacher self-efficacy (TSE), collective efficacy, and other teacher- and school-level variables in Mexico. Given the absence of psychometrically robust instruments to assess collective efficacy among Spanish-speaking teachers, the Collective Teacher Beliefs Scale (CTBS) was first adapted into Spanish, and its psychometric properties were evaluated. Subsequently, multilevel analyses incorporating teacher- and school-level factors revealed that professional development on multicultural communication, classroom autonomy, and collaboration, at the teacher level, and collective efficacy and stakeholder participation, at the school level, were significant predictors of TSE. Finally, implications for future practice and policy are discussed.