Self-efficacy and nontask performance at work. A meta-analytic summary

Abstract

Self-efficacy plays a critical role in guiding and maintaining behaviours across various life domains, including organisational settings where it enhances task-specific performance. This paper extends the role of self-efficacy to nontask or contextual performance, focusing on citizenship and counterproductive performance. Through a systematic review and meta-analysis, we examine its role as both an antecedent and a moderator. Among 11,877 records, 176 papers (194 independent studies) were included in the systematic review, and 158 papers (172 independent studies) in the meta-analysis. Findings support our hypotheses. In relation to citizenship performance (N = 49,464) results showed that self-efficacious individuals are more likely to engage in extra-role activities, fostering personal, collective, and organisational development (ρ = .45). They exhibit proactive behaviours such as voicing concerns, providing exceptional customer service, and helping behaviours. Additionally, self-efficacy serves as a protective factor against counterproductive and antisocial performance detrimental to organisations and stakeholders (N = 12,498, ρ = .24). While studies on the moderation of self-efficacy are limited, our systematic review confirms its role in buffering the impact of adverse working conditions on counterproductive performance.