A - 26 Self-Efficacy and Meta-Prospective Memory in Older Adults

Objective Bandura’s theory of self-efficacy (2012) highlights the role of self-appraisal in performance. Individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) may inaccurately appraise their performance on memory-based tasks. The current study predicted that the MCI group would have lower self-efficacy predicting lower meta-prospective memory (meta-PM) accuracy compared to healthy controls. Researchers also predicted a negative relationship between self-efficacy and reported memory complaints regardless of group status. Method Participants were recruited through community flyers and a rural outpatient neuropsychology clinic. Participants (ages 60 to 90) were divided into MCI (n = 31) and healthy (n = 50) groups based on MMSE scores or prior neuropsychological diagnoses. Measures included generalized and task-specific appraisals of PM, objective PM performance, and a self-reported measure of generalized self-efficacy. Results MCI and healthy groups were equivalent in self-efficacy ratings t(79) = 1.43, p = 0.16, d = 0.33. There was no significant correlation between self-efficacy and meta-PM accuracy (r = −0.05, p = 0.64). The difference in correlations between self-efficacy and overall memory complaints between healthy and MCI groups was approaching significance (Fisher’s Z = -1.88, p = 0.06), mostly driven by the MCI group’s significant negative correlation (r = −0.50, p = 0.004*). There was also a significant difference between groups’ correlations in efficacy ratings and PM-only complaints (Fisher’s Z = -2.06, p = 0.04*), given the MCI group’s strong negative correlation (r = −0.57, p < 0.001**). Conclusions Self-efficacy was not significantly related to meta-PM accuracy; self-efficacy was significantly related to overall and prospective-only memory complaints, attributable to significant negative correlations within the MCI group. As such, the MCI group’s self-efficacy is significantly related to perceptions of PM functioning in their daily lives.