Self-efficacy, locus of control and gender as predictors of workers' interpersonal skills

Abstract

This study examined the roles of self-efficacy, locus of control and gender in predicting interpersonal skills among Local Government workers in Akoko South West and Akoko North East Areas in Ondo State. A cross-sectional survey design was adopted in this study. Using accidental sampling method, a total of 220 Local Government employees (91 (41.4%) are females and 129 (58.6%) are males); their ages ranged from 18 to 65. The hypotheses were tested by using multiple regression analysis. The result revealed that self-efficacy significantly predicted interpersonal skill (β = .241, p-c 0.05) among the sample. The independent predictions of locus of control and gender were not significant. The joint prediction of self-efficacy, locus of control and gender was significant (F (3,216) = 6.645, P < 0.01). Among the demographic variables, only religious affiliation had a significant relationship with interpersonal skill (r (218) = - 0.226, P < 0.01). The study concluded that self- efficacy, locus of control and gender differences could be relied upon jointly by organizational management in order to increase the interpersonal skills of their workers.