Development and Validation of the Self-Efficacy Scale for Bharatanatyam Dancers

Self-efficacy, the belief in one's ability to succeed, plays a crucial role in learning, consistent practice and performance in skill-intensive fields. Bharatanatyam, a classical Indian dance form, requires high levels of technical precision, artistic expression and physical endurance. While research in sports and Western dance has shown that self-efficacy enhances performance, there is limited evidence in Indian classical dance, and no validated self-efficacy tool specific to Bharatanatyam exists. Standard scales do not capture the cultural, physical and expressive dimensions of Bharatanatyam. This gap in measurement limits researchers' understanding of dancers' confidence levels in specific performance domains.

This study aimed to develop and validate a self-efficacy scale tailored to Bharatanatyam dancers.

A 20-item scale was developed and validated, categorised into four domains: technical skills, expressive abilities, performance readiness and overall confidence. Items were rated on a five-point Likert scale. Content validation involved expert review (n = 6), focusing on item relevance and clarity. Experts evaluated each item, and feedback was used to refine the tool. As a part of initial validation, Cronbach's alpha was calculated to assess the internal consistency reliability of the 20-item scale.

Experts unanimously agreed on the relevance and clarity of all items. The scale demonstrated strong content validity, with a content validity ratio of 1.00 and Item Content Validity Index values ranging from 0.83 to 1.00, indicating accurate reflection of key performance areas in Bharatanatyam.

The Self-Efficacy Scale for Bharatanatyam Dancers developed is a contextually relevant and valid tool for assessing dancers' confidence across performance domains. It has potential applications in the design of psychological support in classical dance education.