The Locus of Control Contsruct
analytical Essay
1974 words
Locus of Control, originally conceptualized by Julian Rotter (1966), has been found to be critical to numerous studies. Within psychology, it is considered to be a generalized expectancy regarding the forces that determine reinforcement. Individuals with internal orientation perceive rewards as contingent based on personal behavior, whereas those with external orientation attribute reinforcement received to external factors such as chance and powerful others (Levenson 1981). This essay examines the nature and significance of this psychological construct, especially in academic achievement and health domains. Additionally, it has been argued that high internality is positively associated with leadership while high scores of powerful others have detrimental impacts. Finally comes the argument that higher internality is beneficial for career and leadership.
The nature and the importance of the ‘Locus of Control’ construct
Theoretically derived from Rotter’s I-E Scale, the Levenson scale is extensively used because of its sufficient reliability and validity. Compared with overly simplistic I-E scale, this multidimensional approach is more convincible as it lessens ambiguous wording and almost deters social desirability bias which might arouse a loss of reality (Krampen 1981). In contrast, it may be argued that the I-E Scale is more widely applied. Central construct as it is, I-E scale is surrounded by other development of Locus of Control construct and may be more dominant in some domains. Riordan (1981) administered those two scales to South African students. Effectively, Rotter’s scale was found high reliability, together with the result that Black participants scored significantly less towards internality than White respondent...
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... pp. 159-168, viewed 4 April 2014, Tandfonline, doi: 10.1080/00224545.1981.9711654.
Rotter, J. 1966, ‘Generalized expectancies for internal versus external control of reinforcement’, Psychological Monographs, vol. 80, pp. 1-28, viewed 1 April 2014, PsycARTICLES, doi: 10.1037/h0092976.
Selart, M. 2005, ‘Understanding the role of locus of control in consultative decision-making: A case study’. Management Decision, vol. 43, pp. 397-412.
Spector, P.E. 1988,‘Development of the work locus of control scale’. Journal of Occupational Psychology, vol. 61, pp. 335-340, viewed 10 April 2014, Wiley Online Library, doi: 10.1111/j.2044-8325.1988.tb00470.x.
Wallston, B. S. and Wallston, K. A. 1978, ‘Locus of Control and Health: A Review of the Literature’, Health Education & Behavior, vol. 6, no. 1, pp. 107-117, viewed 5 April 2014, Sage Journals, doi: 10.1177/109019817800600102.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes the nature and significance of the locus of control psychological construct, especially in academic achievement and health domains.
- Compares the levenson scale with rotter's i-e scale because of its reliability and validity.
- Argues that locus of control construct provides health problems and treatments with essential insights.
- Argues that generalized locus of control plays an influential role in academic achievement.
- Explains that high internality is positively correlated with effective democratic leadership. supervisors and subordinates have higher exceptions of controlled by personal effort.
- Explains that high scores on the p scale might have adverse impacts on effective autocratic leadership where there is no employees’ involvement and decision-making process is totally controlled by leaders.
- Explains that they were raised in a democratic environment, which allowed them to grow up as independent, dominant, and self-sufficient. however, scores of p scale and c scale are relatively low.
- Argues that higher internality is a key trait of an effective leader, and suggests that democratic leaders scored significantly higher on i scale.
- Concludes that locus of control indicates the degree to which persons ascribe outcomes to personal behaviors or outside forces like chance and powerful others.
- Opines that moderation is the key to success in different schools. anderson, a. and hattie, j. 2005, 'locus of control, self-efficacy, and motivation in different schools'.
- Cites barbuto, weltmer, and pennisi as antecedents of leader-member exchange quality.
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- Responsibility and Controlexplanatory essayIt is important for us humans to know that we must take full responsibility for our actions and maturely deal with any consequences that those actions may lead to. According to Ryon and Gleason (2013), “the first conceptualization of control was developed in 1966 by Rotter,” which is currently referred to as locus of control. Rotter defined locus of control as “the degree to which an individual expects that a contingent relationship exists between one’s behaviors and outcomes” (Ryon & Gleason, 2013). Fournier and Jeanrie reference Rotter’s study by explaining the two types of locus of control: “external control” and “internal control” (as cited in Rotter, 1966, p. 1). The purpose of Rotter’s theory was to examine “what causes reinforcement” whether it be an intrinsic or extrinsic factor (Kormanik & Rocco, 2009). Rotter measured “people’s general control expectancies” by using what is known as the “Internal-External Locus of Control Scale” (Fournier & Jeanrie, 2003).
In this essay, the author
- Explains that rotter defined locus of control as the degree to which an individual expects that a contingent relationship exists between one’s behaviors and outcomes.
- States that rotter provided grounded theory on the locus of control construct in a discussion of generalized expectancies for internal versus external control of reinforcement.
- Explains that the internal-external locus of control scale uses the concepts of two previous scales developed by james and phares.
- Explains ryon and gleason's view that locus of control should be considered both a state- and trait-level construct.
- Explains that the internal theory of locus of control represents their belief system. when they fail an exam, they do not blame anyone but themselves for not studying enough.
- Cites fournier, g., & jeanrie, c. (2003). locus of control: back to basics.
900 wordsRead More - Levels of Superstitious Belief and Perceived Controlanalytical essayLanger, E. J. (1975). The illusion of control. Journal of personality and social psychology, 32(2), 311.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that highly superstitious people tend to believe that they have some degree of control over events over which they objectively have none.
- Analyzes how keinan and dudley support matute's theory of superstitious belief being positively correlated with higher degrees of perceived control.
- Explains the purpose of the experiment, which is to prove that there is a direct positive correlation between levels of superstition and perceived control over an event.
- Explains that the study involved two independent variables: the level of superstition (high and low) and the condition (active and passive).
- Describes how the experiment was conducted on computers in a university of new south wales computer lab. the ‘inquisit’ software package was used for the stimulus presentation.
- Explains that participants were informed about the results of an imaginary friend named ‘bob’ performing the task. 40 experimental trials were done in the passive condition.
- Explains that after every ten trials, participants were asked to judge the amount of control they had over the light being illuminated.
- Explains that the amount of control that button-press had over the light varied during the experimental session.
- Explains that participants completed the superstitious beliefs questionnaire (sbq), a demographics questionnaire, and were asked if they were nave to the design of the experiment.
- Explains that the sbq questionnaire is a 26-item scale which aims to assess level of superstition in psychologically healthy individuals.
- Explains that participants were instructed to complete the ‘active’ condition where they were asked to perform the action of clicking the button or not and observing whether the light turned on.
- Explains that participants were instructed to complete the ‘passive’ condition in which they were informed about an imaginary friend, bob, who was performing the task.
- Explains that participants were asked to complete the sbq questionnaire, demographics questions such as gender and age, and whether they were nave to the design of the experiment or not.
- Analyzes matute, h., and langer, e. j. on the effects of uncontrollable reinforcement in humans.
- Explains that superstitious behavior in humans is affected by probability and type of outcome.
1545 wordsRead More - Parenting Style And Parenting Stylesexplanatory essayLocus of control (Rotter, 1954) refers to the extent of individuals believing that they can control events that affect them. It can be divided into internal and external locus of control. Internal locus of control is that people believes they can control their own life. So, they are less likely to blame others or past things. Meanwhile, they would rather take action and cope with bad situations. They live happier because they be...
In this essay, the author
- Explains that self-awareness and parenting style are standard strategies that parents use in their child rearing. parenting style is affected by both parents' and children's personality.
- Explains that neglectful parents are low on demanding and responsiveness towards their child, and no stress, encouragement, or warmth will be given to the child in this parenting style. neglectful families scored lower self-esteem than others.
- Explains that parenting style affects some of the demotion of core self-evaluation (cse). cse represents a stable personality trait including 4 elements.
- Explains that locus of control is the extent of individuals believing that they can control events that affect them.
- Explains that self-esteem refers to an individual's sense of his or her value or worth, or the extent to which a person values, approves of, appreciates, prizes or likes him or herself.
- Explains that interaction with a parent is important for children because it totally shapes their personality, self-esteem, and achievements on different aspects.
- Narrates how they grow up in a neglectful family, where their parents didn't care about their academic performance. their mother sent them to extension classes when they were primary three.
- Explains that their childhood experiences made them a low self-esteem person and external locus of control. they blamed their mother for forcing them to attend extension classes.
- Narrates how they had a big failure on public examination so that they couldn't get into university. they felt ashamed because they were the stupidest in their group of friends.
- Narrates how they set up a goal to get into university after talking to their teachers and best friends. branden claimed that setting up goal and taking action can enhance self-esteem.
- Explains that they changed from external locus of control to internal. they put a lot of effort on studying associate degree program, work extremely hard on every presentation, assignments, tests and examinations.
- Narrates how their self-esteem became higher than before. they believe that if they pay full attention on study, they can get the highest g.p.a. in their group of friends.
1007 wordsRead More - What Is External Locus Of Controlcomparative essayRotters major concept is the locus of control which is the extent to which an individuals’ responses are attributed to their own behavior or external forces, such as fate. An external locus of control is when individuals’ belief that their behavior is caused by outside forces while an internal locus of control is people have the belief that they control their fate. People with an external locus of control tend to be more confirmative, more anxious, and vulnerable to stress and tend to attribute failure to either luck or the tasks difficulty. If I had find a person in my life who fits the description of someone with a strong external locus of control, I would say I have the strongest external locus of control. Although I do not fit in to the
In this essay, the author
- Explains the rotters major concept of the locus of control, which is the extent to which an individual's responses are attributed to their own behavior or external forces, such as fate.
- Compares the personalities of their mothers, who are assertive and empathetic, and those with internal locus of control.
641 wordsRead More - Temptationanalytical essayNordgren, L. F., & Chou, E. Y. (2011). The Push and Pull of Temptation: The Bidirectional Influence of Temptation on Self-Control. Psychological Science (Sage Publications Inc.), 22(11), 1386-1390.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how tyler perry's temptation highlights the struggles presented to a young african-american woman whose strong christian beliefs counteract sin-stricken society.
- Analyzes how judith's un-waivered personality led to her being a part of the other in temptation.
- Analyzes how judith represented the struggle of pressure to do immoral things, while the men in her life represented two different sides.
- Analyzes how judith's character developed from the other to the "norms" of society over her secretive interactions with harley.
- Explains that emmitt, perry, and nordgren, l. f., & chou, e. y. (2011). the push and pull of temptation: the bidirectional influence of
830 wordsRead More - Workplace Violenceopinion essay(http://www.inc.com/articles/details/00,,art3150,00.html). In the words of researcher and industrial psychologist, Dr. Matthew S. O’ Connell, " There are three psychological indicators that are most likely to show the potential for angry and/or violent behavior on the job. First, low locus of control, people who have a low locus of control do not feel that they are in control of their lives. They tend to be fatalistic and to perceive that things happen to them randomly, rather than as a result of their own actions. They often feel persecuted and victimized by others. Over times, this feeling of being out of control can cause a high level of stress, which may lead to irrational or violent action against themselves and others. Second, Job stress can be defined as the harmful...
In this essay, the author
- Explains that each week, 20 workers are murdered and 18,000 are assaulted at work, and homicide is the leading cause of death for women in the workplace.
- Explains that the medical college of georgia administrative policies and procedures office of primary responsibility: public safety division defines workplace violence as any behavior, act or statement that would be interpreted by a reasonable person to be aggressive, intimidating, harassing, or unsafe.
- Explains three psychological indicators that are most likely to show the potential for angry and/or violent behavior on the job.
- Explains that workplace stress and feelings of unjust persecution seem to be the strongest factors that lead to workplace violence.
- Explains that workplace violence can be categorized into three types: type i, type ii, and type iii. an employer must foster a considerate and respectful management of employees.
- Explains that violence in the workplace is now at epidemic levels according to data provided by the u.s department of justice and the bureau of justice statistics.
- Explains that the bureau of labor statistics reported in 1992 22,396 non-fatal incidents involving hitting, kicking, beating and rape. an estimated 2 million u.s employees were physically attacked at work during 1993.
- Explains that the bureau of justice statistics analyzed workplace victimizations by type of work setting and found that 61% occurred in private companies, 30% occurred among government employees, and 8% of the victims were self-employed.
- Explains the factors that increase a worker's risk for workplace assault. these include contact with the public, exchange of money, delivery of passengers, goods, or services, mobile workplace, working with unstable or volatile persons in health care, social service or criminal justice settings.
- Explains that the highest rates per 100,00 workers occurred in retail trades, public administration, transportation/communication/public utilities, and the geographic distribution.
- Explains that the leading causes of occupational injury death varied by sex, with homicides accounting for 11% of all occupational injuries deaths among male workers.
- Explains that homicide is the leading cause of death for women in the workplace, which brings into focus the rising existing of domestic violence.
- Opines that domestic violence is carried into the workplace as evidenced by lost productivity, stress, increased health care costs, employee absenteeism and turnover, and workplace violence.
- Opines that domestic violence perpetrators act out their frustrations in public and the situations of violence at home also becomes violent at work.
- Explains that male batterers have taken out their problems and aggressions into the public and confronted their victims at the workplace.
- Explains that some companies tolerate yelling, screaming out, door-slamming and abusive language far longer than they should. government agencies are bound by certain laws regarding wrongful termination, so they have to be careful how they approach people.
- Explains that environmental, administrative, and behavioral strategies have the potential for reducing the risk of workplace violence.
- Argues that cashless transactions in taxicabs and retail settings could be used in any setting where cash is exchanged between workers and customers.
- Explains that physical separation of workers from customers, clients, and the general public through bullet-resistant barriers or enclosures has been proposed for retail settings such as gas stations and convenience stores.
- Opines that access to and aggress from the workplace are important areas to assess. the number of entrances and exits, the ease with which no employees can gain access, and the areas where potential attackers can hide are issues that should be addressed.
- Explains that numerous security devices may reduce the risk for assaults against workers and facilitate the identification and apprehension of perpetrators.
- Explains that personal protective equipment such as body armor has been used effectively by public safety personnel to mitigate the effects of workplace violence. administrative controls, staffing plans and work practices are included in california occupational safety and health administration guidelines for the security and safety of health care and community service workers.
- Recommends reviewing work practices and staffing patterns during the opening and closing of establishments and during money drops and pickups for the increased risk of assault they pose to workers.
- Explains that employers can track and assess threats and violent incidents in the workplace through policies and procedures for assessing and reporting threats.
- Explains that public agencies have a particular vulnerability because openness and accessibility are essential to their operations. the case for action, interventions that work, acute interventions, and the ingredients for violence is divided into four major sections.
- Analyzes rosenberg's first section, "the case for action," and explains the reasons why personal security has become an issue: less acceptance of personal responsibility, decline of support institutions, privacy, dignity, and control, increasing importance of a person’s job in determining psychological well-being.
- Explains rosenberg's "interventions that work" which focuses on establishing a formal, written policy, banning the possession of deadly weapons, keeping employees informed, supporting an effective employee assistance program, reviewing physical security, avoiding negligent hiring, firing when necessary, and being sensitive to employees' concerns about job security.
- Analyzes how rosenberg discusses the role of a critical-incident coordinator in the third section, " acute intervention."
- Analyzes rosenberg's nine-point " prescription for action" for managers to follow to ensure that their prevention and intervention measures work.
- Explains that janice marra agrees that better employee screening, improved employee support networks, and employee assistance programs can have a positive impact on workplace stress and violence.
- Explains that workplace violence programs can be as simple as defining for staff what the term "workplace violence" really means or adopting zero-tolerance policies for threatening or abusive language and carrying weapons to work. diversity training and anger management programs help workers develop better people and coping skills.
- Explains that american society is made up of heterogeneous groups with very different social systems and values lends to disharmony, conflict of interest, and even violence.
- Opines that human resources professionals should be trained to recognize behavioral and psychological patterns which indicated the need for follow-up.
- Opines that appropriate training is needed to understand the conflict/violence plan and human relations issues. assertiveness training, conflict resolution and reflective listening techniques, and instruction in the causes of violence in small and large groups could become part of an institution's annual activities.
- Explains that employers can hire private investigators, activate the employer assistance program, or order a workplace violence assessment by professionals.
- Concludes that although no single intervention strategy is appropriate for all workplaces, immediate action should be taken to reduce the toll of workplace homicide on our nation's workforce.
- Explains that violence in the workplace can be found at http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/violphs/
- Opines that violence in the workplace can be found at http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/violcurr.html.
- Opines that violence prevention and personal safety training is available online at peacepath.com.
- Explains brenner, john, and summerfield, betsy. building a workplace violence plan.
- Cites cronin, p. michael's workplace violence: defusing dangerous employees (inc. magazine), art3150,00.html.
- Explains that esperance, l. keith, and icma resources are available at http://ptg.djnr.com.
- Explains marra janice's profile: profiling employees and assessing the potential for violence.
- Opines that the rising tide of domestic violence in the workplace is no linger a safe haven.
- Explains tan, manny, psy. d., workplace& targeted violence, available at http://www.ocpapsych.com.
- Explains that tan, manny, psy.d. (no date), workplace violence& media technology, (online).
4285 wordsRead More - Essay On Health And Healthopinion essayDifferent scholarly articles and books have taken an approach in tackling the topic of health. They each help the reader determine whether or not an individual controls their bodies and their health. Throughout researching the topic, I 've come to the conclusion that individuals tend to not have control of their bodies and health more-so than having control.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that the term health is made up of several different terms such as class, race, gender, education, and income which can all affect a person's health in many different ways.
- Concludes that individuals tend to not have control of their bodies and health more-so than having control. it all depends on the person's ability to change and personality.
- Analyzes how william cockerham states that health has many social determinants that can affect an individual's overall well-being.
- Explains that cockerham breaks down each social determinant separately. social practices and conditions refer to living or work situations which individuals have control over and at times they do not.
- Opines that social factors are important to a society to organize resources to cope with health hazards and deliver health care to the population at large.
- Explains that a person's health can be affected by their families race economic status, and even gender.
- Explains how racial inequalities in the united states can affect a person's health. asians have great health, while african americans have shorter life spans.
- Explains that a typical white man will live to be 76.5 years of age, whereas men of color will typically live up to 71.8 years. a family of colour is usually below the poverty line because of disadvantages in the work force, poor housing, and poor school district.
- Explains cockerham's argument that an upper class household is the longest to live since they can provide medical benefits to their families, a strong education, and most likely don't have economic stress.
- Opines that if more men and women realized what kinds of things can happen when their health isn't paid attention to more closely, they would have a healthier lifestyle and longer life span.
- Opines that women are more likely to hold in their feelings and not express themselves which causes anxiety and depression, while men turn to drugs and alcohol in times of need.
- Explains that mental health has differences in terms of race. an african american is more likely to suffer from depression than compared to a white person.
- Explains that even though many life-threatening illnesses are causing deaths, death can be prevented by staying away from smoking cigarettes. over 440,000 americans die each year from cancer deaths.
- Opines that a person makes the choice to try new things such as smoking and even quit if they begin.
- Explains that healthy lifestyles are typically taught at home and from a formal education. only education correlates positively and consistently with healthy behaviors.
- Explains how mirowsky and ross explain how education is a course of action which can cause health awareness.
- Explains that a student cannot control what school they go to at an early age and who their teacher might be. this is easier when they reach adulthood and plan to continue their education.
- Explains that when skills are mastered, children can have a sense of "personal control" and "healthy lifestyles" which can be used to become problem solvers and be effective agents in their lives.
- Explains that the skills that a person can master from formal education are how to read and write, which are key components to communicate throughout life.
- Analyzes how jenny chu's article i quit drinking, then i got addicted to food shows how one person juggles two different addictions throughout her life.
- Describes how chu realized that this was not the type of life she wanted to live. she was experiencing an emotional break down and disconnected with her friends, family, therapist, and her job.
- Describes how chu experienced many different emotions over this course of time that she even considered drinking again just so she could drop her food addiction. after over eaters anonymous and alcohol anonymous failed chu, she turned her energy to weight watchers to help her fight
- Opines that a person can take control over their bodies and health if it is something that is important to them.
- Analyzes how reading cockerham, mirowsky, ross, and chu's information made them realize how certain parts of their life are taken for granted and some people are not as fortunate.
1866 wordsRead More - Stress Related Depression: Connecting the Dotscomparative essayLiu, C., Spector, P. E., & Jex, S. M. (Sept 2005). The relation of job control with job strains: a comparison of multiple data sources. (Short research paper). Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology 78.3 325(312).
In this essay, the author
- Compares the results of a dalhousie university study of the stress-depression link using male and female rats as test subjects.
- Cites adelson, r. (january 2005). hard-hitting hormones: the stress-depression link.
- Explains that stress has been linked to an increasing number of mental and physical illnesses in recent years. depression related to stress affects patients of all ages in both genders.
- Defines stress as a mentally or emotionally distracting condition occurring because of difficult pressures, but the symptoms are subtle and ill-defined.
- Explains that the national institute for occupational safety and health's stress at work report indicates that between 26-40% of workers think their jobs are "very stressful".
- Cites brooks, n. r., gerrie, s. and spector, p. e.
1229 wordsRead More - External Locus Of Controlexplanatory essayThis fifth negotiation that we did was unlike any other we had done for many reasons. The whole time leading up to the negotiation seemed to be a bunch of unfortunate events at my expense. Although the results that I received at the end of the negotiation weren’t as bad as they could’ve been, I still believe it to be somewhat of a failure because I know I had the potential to do better. If I had an external locus of control I would have just attributed this failure to the influences that affected me leading up to the negotiation. However, being a person with a high internal locus of control I know that my success is based on my own work. I could have been more successful in this negotiation had I been better at planning, been more careful and more
In this essay, the author
- Opines that the fifth negotiation that they did was unlike any other they had done for many reasons. although the results weren't as bad as they could've been, they still believe it to be somewhat of a failure.
- Narrates how they managed their time wisely and started working on them a week before they were due for change. the day before the negotiation, they finally decided to look at their role sheet.
- Narrates how they improvised during the negotiation with mr. hollis, the guy who sits next to them in class.
- Explains how they learned about themselves and their negotiation style through questionnaires and the big five ocean test.
- Explains that they learned a few lessons from engaging in negotiations. they learned to quit procrastinating, prepare things ahead of time, and take care of their things.
1226 wordsRead More - Measuring Locus Of Control Research Paperanalytical essayAssignment Two Kathleen O’Connell Palm Beach State College Measuring Locus of Control Throughout life, we find ourselves in the position of believing without seeing. This could be regarding faith, since whomever we worship tends to be more conceptual, even though man has rendered images, which may or may not capture the likeness or essence of the person, God, spiritual being or perhaps energy itself. People often wonder “why me” and could even feel like they are being punished and struggle to understand why. In terms of measuring locus of control, there are no finite answers necessarily. People can measure their locus of control based upon their religious beliefs.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes the nature of human beings' proclivity to place blame and misdirect their feelings in trying to understand the unimaginable "whys".
- Opines that jung's typology can help to both give and gain insight into personality types.
499 wordsRead More