The relationship between self-efficacy and instructional practice of in-service soft disciplines, hard disciplines and EFL teachers

Abstract The present study aimed at investigating the relationship between teachers’ self-efficacy perceptions and their instructional practices. The mediatory role of the teachers’ occupational characteristics such as their disciplines was also examined. For this purpose, a total of 70 teachers from the soft science, hard science and English language teaching (ELT) disciplines were compared. This study was situated within a mixed-methods design in which questionnaires as well as observation and semi-structured interviews were used to measure the efficacy-teaching practice. Results of Pearson correlation coefficients revealed that the self-efficacy of soft science and hard science teachers was significantly correlated with their teaching practice, with the ELT teachers’ efficacy-teaching relation not reaching a statistical significance. Results obtained from the observation and interviews further explained the teachers’ practices and the challenges that they faced in their classroom practices. Findings are discussed in light of both individual and societal perspective, offering important implications for the classrooms.