The purpose of this study was to examine the reliability and validity of a self-efficacy scale (SES: Sherer et al., 1982) using a Japanese community sample. The SES comprised 23 items measuring generalized self-efficacy. The SES and other measures were administered to a total of 1524 males and females whose ages ranged from 13 to 92. Exploratory factor analyses were conducted separately for sex and age groups and the factor structures obtained from these were compared. The results revealed a clear one-factor solution for the sample as a whole. A similar one-factor structure was obtained across sex and age groups. The SES was found to have satisfactory test-retest reliability and internal consistency. The correlations of the scores on the SES with other measures, such as depression, self-esteem, masculinity, and perceived health, provided some supports of construct validity. Some evidences of the construct and factorial validity of the SES in the Japanese community sample were found.
