Locus of Control - A Class Tutorial

James Neill Last updated:

Goals Applications Tutorial Outline

Goals This exercise is designed to give students: Insight into "locus of control" as a psychological construct Feedback about individual locus of control scores Strategies for changing locus of control Applications Possible applications of this exercise include: Psychology classes Personal development courses Corporate training Therapeutic / rehabilitation programs Variations can be created by selecting different types of Locus of Control questionnaires. Tutorial Outline 1. Invite students to complete a Locus of Control questionnaire - at this stage do not explain what it is measuring. 2. Have students self-score and get a total number. Make you're aware of which direction the questionnaire is scored in. 3. Explain the concept of Locus of Control. 4. Draw a <---------------------> (continuum) on a whiteboard. 5. Label the ends as external <----------------> internal and explain both ends of the spectrum 6. Add a scale to the spectrum and invite students to come up and place a mark on the board, so that the distribution of class scores is visible but the process is fairly anonymous (e.g., try to have several markers available so there's a crowd at the board rather than individuals one at a time being watched). Optional: Ask participants to initial their score - this helps them to own their score without necessarily giving away their identity (depends

how well they know one another) 7. Caution the class about overly simplistic interpretations and emphasise that when discussing psychological constructs such as LOC its important to avoid valenced interpretation (i.e., good vs. bad): o In general, a more internal locus of control seems to advantageous, but this is not always the case, for example, for external locus of control people tend to cope better with terminal illness. o Very high locus of control particularly, if not accompanied by real life skills, can contribute to anxiety problems. 8. Present major group differences - i.e., males more internal than females, people get more internal as they get older and ask students to explain these findings. 9. Ask students for ways they can suggest for changing someone's locus of control towards internality. Some psycho-educational programs are effective in shifting people towards a more internal locus of control.

Locus of Control Scale (Rotter)

1. a. Children get into trouble because their parents punish them too much. b. The trouble with most children nowadays is that their parents are too easy with them. 2. a. Many of the unhappy things in people's lives are partly due to bad luck. b. People's misfortunes result from the mistakes they make. 3. a. One of the major reasons why we have wars is because people don't take enough interest in politics. b. There will always be wars, no matter how hard people try to prevent them. 4. a. In the long run people get the respect they deserve in this world. b. Unfortunately, an individual's worth often passes unrecognized no matter how hard he tries. 5. a. The idea that teachers are unfair to students is nonsense. b. Most students don't realize the extent to which their grades are influenced by accidental happenings. 6. a. Without the right breaks one cannot be an effective leader. b. Capable people who fail to become leaders have not taken advantage of their opportunities.

7. a. No matter how hard you try some people just don't like you. b. People who can't get others to like them don't understand how to get along with others. 8. a. Heredity plays the major role in determining one's personality. b. It is one's experiences in life which determine what they're like. 9. a. I have often found that what is going to happen will happen. b. Trusting to fate has never turned out as well for me as making a decision to take a definite course of action. 10. a. In the case of the well prepared student there is rarely if ever such a thing as an unfair test. b. Many times exam questions tend to be so unrelated to course work that studying in really useless. 11. a. Becoming a success is a matter of hard work, luck has little or nothing to do with it. b. Getting a good job depends mainly on being in the right place at the right time. 12. a. The average citizen can have an influence in government decisions. b. This world is run by the few people in power, and there is not much the little guy can do about it. 13. a. When I make plans, I am almost certain that I can make them work. b. It is not always wise to plan too far ahead because many things turn out to be a matter of good or bad fortune anyhow. 14. a. There are certain people who are just no good. b. There is some good in everybody. 15. a. In my case getting what I want has little or nothing to do with luck. b. Many times we might just as well decide what to do by flipping a coin. 16. a. Who gets to be the boss often depends on who was lucky enough to be in the right place first. b. Getting people to do the right thing depends upon ability, luck has little or nothing to do with it. 17. a. As far as world affairs are concerned, most of us are the victims of forces we can neither understand, nor control. b. By taking an active part in political and social affairs the people can control world events. 18. a. Most people don't realize the extent to which their lives are controlled by accidental happenings. b. There really is no such thing as "luck." 19. a. One should always be willing to admit mistakes. b. It is usually best to cover up one's mistakes.

20. a. It is hard to know whether or not a person really likes you. b. How many friends you have depends upon how nice a person you are. 21. a. In the long run the bad things that happen to us are balanced by the good ones. b. Most misfortunes are the result of lack of ability, ignorance, laziness, or all three. 22. a. With enough effort we can wipe out political corruption. b. It is difficult for people to have much control over the things politicians do in office. 23. a. Sometimes I can't understand how teachers arrive at the grades they give. b. There is a direct connection between how hard 1 study and the grades I get. 24. a. A good leader expects people to decide for themselves what they should do. b. A good leader makes it clear to everybody what their jobs are. 25. a. Many times I feel that I have little influence over the things that happen to me. b. It is impossible for me to believe that chance or luck plays an important role in my life. 26. a. People are lonely because they don't try to be friendly. b. There's not much use in trying too hard to please people, if they like you, they like you. 27. a. There is too much emphasis on athletics in high school. b. Team sports are an excellent way to build character. 28. a. What happens to me is my own doing. b. Sometimes I feel that I don't have enough control over the direction my life is taking. 29. a. Most of the time I can't understand why politicians behave the way they do. b. In the long run the people are responsible for bad government on a national as well as on a local level.

What is Locus of Control?

What is Locus of Control? Is an internal locus of control desirable? Links References What is Locus of Control?

James Neill Last updated:

Within psychology, Locus of Control is considered to be an important aspect of personality. The concept was developed originally Julian Rotter in the 1950s (Rotter, 1966). Locus of Control refers to an individual's perception about the underlying main causes of events in his/her life. Or, more simply: Do you believe that your destiny is controlled by yourself or by external forces (such as fate, god, or powerful others)? The full name Rotter gave the construct was Locus of Control of Reinforcement. In giving it this name, Rotter was bridging behavioural and cognitive psychology. Rotter's view was that behaviour was largely guided by "reinforcements" (rewards and punishments) and that through contingencies such as rewards and punishments, individuals come to hold beliefs about what causes their actions. These beliefs, in turn, guide what kinds of attitudes and behaviours people adopt. This understanding of Locus of Control is consistent, for example, with Philip Zimbardo (a famous psychologist): A locus of control orientation is a belief about whether the outcomes of our actions are contingent on what we do (internal control orientation) or on events outside our personal control (external control orientation)." (Zimbardo, 1985, p. 275) Thus, locus of control is conceptualised as referring to a unidimensional continuum, ranging from external to internal: External Locus of Control Individual believes that his/her behaviour is guided by fate, luck, or other external circumstances

Internal Locus of Control Individual believes that his/her behaviour is guided by his/her personal decisions and efforts.

Is an internal locus of control desirable? In general, it seems to be psychologically healthy to perceive that one has control over those things which one is capable of influencing. In simplistic terms, a more internal locus of control is generally seen as desirable. Having an Internal locus of control can also be referred to as "self-agency", "personal control", "selfdetermination", etc. Research has found the following trends: Males tend to be more internal than females As people get older they tend to become more internal People higher up in organisational structures tend to be more internal (Mamlin, Harris, & Case, 2001) However, its important to warn people against lapsing in the overly simplistic view notion that internal is good and external is bad (two legs good, four legs bad?). There are important subtleties and complexities to be considered. For example: Internals can be psychologically unhealthy and unstable. An internal orientation usually needs to be matched by competence, self-efficacy and opportunity so that the person is able to successfully experience the sense of personal control and responsibility. Overly internal people who lack competence, efficacy and opportunity can become neurotic, anxious and depressed. In other words, internals need to have a realistic sense of their circle of influence in order to experience 'success'. Externals can lead easy-going, relaxed, happy lives. Despite these cautions, psychological research has found that people with a more internal locus of control seem to be better off, e.g., they tend to be more achievement oriented and to get better paid jobs. However, thought regarding causality is needed here too. Do environmental circumstances (such as privilege and disadvantage) cause LOC beliefs or do the beliefs cause the situation? Sometimes Locus of Control is seen as a stable, underlying personality construct, but this may be misleading, since the theory and research indicates that that locus of control is largely learned. There is evidence that, at least to some extent, LOC is a response to circumstances. Some psychological and educational interventions have been found to produce shifts towards internal locus of control (e.g., outdoor education programs; Hans, 2000; Hattie, Marsh, Neill & Richards, 1997).