Locus of control

• Rotter (1966) suggested that the term locus of control is a persons perception of personal control over their own behaviour which is measured along a dimension of ‘high internal’ to ‘high external’
• High internals perceive themselves as having a great deal of personal control over their behaviour, and are therefore more likely to take personal responsibility for it
• What happens to a high internal person is therefore seen as a product of their own ability and effort
• High externals perceive their behaviour as being caused more by external influences or luck
• High internals are active seekers of information that’s useful to them, and so are less likely to rely on the opinions of others
• High internals tend to be more achievement-oriented and consequently are more likely to become leaders and entrepreneurs
• High internals are better able to resist coercion from others
• A meta-analysis by Twenge et al (2004) found that young Americans increasingly believed that their fate was determined more by luck and powerful others rather than their own actions. Researchers found that locus of control scores had become substantially more external in student and child samples between 1960 and 2002. Twenge interprets this trend towards increasing externality in terms of the alienation experienced by young people and the tendency to explain misfortunes on outside forces
• Spector (1983) measured locus of control and predisposition to normative and informational influence in 157 undergraduate students and found no relationship for predisposition to informational social influence, with locus of control not appearing to be a significant factor in this type of conformity. Spector concluded that externals would conform more than internals in situations of normative pressure but wouldn’t conform more in situations of informational pressure