Rafael’s Research Team
For the duration of this course, we will follow Rafael, an experimental psychology graduate student, who is starting to work on his master’s thesis. Rafael tells his advisor that he observed that some people seem to enjoy learning new skills and are willing to try even if they may look silly, while others don’t seem to want to do anything that they don’t already know how to do.
Rafael establishes a connection between this observation and the concept of self-efficacy, or the belief that we have the capability to accomplish a task. He thinks that people who think they can do something are more likely to try it than those who don’t think they can do it.
In your research methods class, you are assigned as one of Rafael’s research assistants. His research team meets weekly to discuss progress and challenges on his research. This week, Rafael asks you for suggestions on what he should do next.
What would you recommend to him? Explain your reasoning.
