A person's perception of control over their own behaviour. Rotter (1966) proposed the concept of internal and external LOC.
What is internal LOC?
People believe that they are mostly responsible for what happens to them.
What is external LOC?
People believe things that happen to them are out of their control.
Which LOC is more likely to resist social influence?
People with high LOC are more self-confident, have higher intelligence, and feel less need for socialapproval. These personality traits lead to greater resistance to social influence.
What is a weakness of LOC?
Rotter (1982) said LOC was only important in new situations, not familiar ones where past experiences are more important. This is a weakness as it suggests the role of LOC may be exaggerated.
What is a strength of LOC?
It has supporting evidence. Holland (1967) repeated Milgram's study and found that 37% of internals did not continued to 450 compared to 23% of externals. This is a strength as the higher % of people with internal LOC's defying shows they are more likely to resist.
