Subjective Expected Utility,Locus of Control,and Behavior1

Although a fundamental assumption of behavior decision theory is that individuals must generally believe they can control their fate if their behavior is to be influenced by subjective expected utility (SEU), the hypothesis that the positive relationship between SEU and behavior is stronger for those with internal locus of control had not been directly tested. That hypothesis was assessed in two separate longitudinal studies of adolescents. The behavior studied in one sample was the initiation of cigarette smoking, and in the other it was the onset of drinking alcohol. The hypothesis received weak support in both studies.     

Health Promotion,Health Locus of Control,and Health Behavior: Two Field Experiments1

In spite of a sizable body of research on the effects of information promotions on health knowledge and health behavior, relatively little is known about how such efforts affect change (or why they do not). This paper addresses that problem by exploring the particular role that health locus of control (HLC) beliefs play in individual responses to health promotion efforts aimed at encouraging preventive health behaviors. Two field experiments are presented. The first experiment examined the extent to which HLC beliefs are related to differences in individual levels of health knowledge following the distribution of an informational booklet on health. Internals high on health value who received the information booklet demonstrated greater health knowledge three months later than did other subjects, although this difference was greater among men than among women. The second experiment explored how HLC beliefs interact with differently framed “control” messages to promote behavior change in breast self-examination (BSE). HLC beliefs interacted with the control language of the BSE promotional message and a neutral reminder to affect subsequent BSE practice. Together, these studies suggest a more influential role for health locus of control beliefs in shaping responses to health messages than has previously been documented in field settings.     

Locus of Control for Consumer Outcomes: Predicting Consumer Behavior1

In order to predict which persons approach the task of shopping strategically, we constructed a measure of locus of control focused specifically on consumer behaviors and outcomes. Psychometric evaluations of the 14-item Consumer Locus of Control scale indicated that it was a reliable instrument whose characteristics were replicated in two separate samples. The scale was used to predict shopping behavior ranging from impulsive to strategic. The measure of consumer locus of control was significantly related to consumer behavior, whereas measures of economic and generalized locus of control proved to be unrelated to shopping effort, planning, and product knowledge. The more internal their consumer control beliefs, the more likely were subjects to be planful and purposive in the act of shopping.     

Locus of Control and Cooperative Behavior in 10-Year-Old Children

Abstract

A game-like task was used to evaluate the cooperative behavior of 10-year-old same-sex dyads that were paired homogeneously or heterogeneously on a premeasure of locus of control. Pairs of girls were relatively more cooperative than were boys, and dyads of internal locus of control boys who displayed relatively little cooperation on initial trials became more cooperative as the game progressed. In addition, male dyads heterogeneous in terms of locus of control (an internal and an external), who also displayed little cooperation initially, became even less cooperative over trials.     

Social Status,the Status Distribution,and Performance in Small Groups1

This article reports two experiments on the effects of status and the status distribution on performance. Grade-school children were randomly assigned a label denoting high status or one denoting low status and then randomly assigned to small groups where they were the only ones of their status or where only one child had a status different from theirs. After completing a group task, the children individually took an anagram test, which served as the performance measure. Consistent with research on the effects of social status, in both experiments children with high status performed significantly better on the anagram test than did children with low status. More important, there were significant status by status distribution interactions. Performance among low-status children was even lower if their status was relatively uncommon than if it was relatively common, whereas performance by high-status children was either unaffected (Experiment 1) or enhanced (Experiment 2) if their status was relatively uncommon. The discussion centers on implications of the results for research and theory on tokenism and perceptions of the prevalence of status characteristics.     

Multidimensional Locus of Control in Prison Inmates1

This study examined public offenders' generalized expectancies of control as they relate to length of time in prison and behavior within the institution, in order to demonstrate the usefulness of a multidimensional modification of Rotter's locus of control scale with a prison sample. Inmates (N= 145) serving sentences in a large, state prison responded to three locus of control scales designed to measure separately expectancies of internality, of control by powerful others, and of control by chance forces. It was reasoned that if the separation of control into these three orientations is meaningful, then changes in perceptions of control by powerful others should be particularly relevant to the prison experience. As predicted, scores on the Powerful Others scale were significantly related to length of time in prison and number of times punished by solitary confinement.     

Effects of Gender Diversity on Performance and Interpersonal Behavior in Small Work Groups

We examined the separate and combined impact of gender composition and training method on both the performance and interpersonal behaviors exhibited in small work groups. Participants were scheduled in groups of three for two 1-h sessions that occurred 1 week apart. In Session 1, groups were trained to assemble the AM portion of a radio. In Session 2, groups were tested on their training. Analyses indicated that groups whose members were trained together took longer to assemble their radios and made more errors than groups whose members were trained apart. No performance differences were found between mixed-gender and same-gender groups. However, women were less task-oriented in mixed-gender than in same-gender groups, but men were more task-oriented in mixed-gender than in same-gender groups. Further, solo women were less talkative than women in the majority, whereas men were more talkative when they were solos rather than in the majority. Implications for the nature of training and gender composition in groups in the workplace are discussed.     

Leader Advancement Motive,Political Skill,Leader Behavior,and Effectiveness: A Moderated Mediation Extension of Socioanalytic Theory

We examine socioanalytic theory from a leadership perspective and extend this research to examine the mediating mechanisms through which leader getting ahead motive and social competence influence leader effectiveness outcomes. A first-stage moderated mediation model was tested and supported, positioning the Leader Motive to Get Ahead × Political Skill interaction as influencing perceived institutional effectiveness and follower satisfaction with one’s leader through leader initiating structure behavior. This research both supports the relevance of socioanalytic theory for predicting leadership outcomes and extends socioanalytic theory to examine a mediating mechanism through which the interaction of the leader getting ahead motive and social competencies affects relevant performance outcomes. Contributions, strengths and limitations, directions for future research, and practical implications are discussed.     

Leader Behavior,Work-Attitudes,and Turnover of Salespeople: An Integrative Study

Data were collected from the national field sales force of a major consumer goods manufacturer. The study develops a structural model of salespeople's perceptions of their supervisors' behaviors (i.e., leadership consideration and leadership role clarity), and the influence of supervisors' behaviors on the sales force's role perceptions, job anxiety, job satisfaction, propensities to leave and actual turnover. The study integrates previous research regarding sales force turnover to form the underpinning for the relationships between the constructs, and finds empirically that sales managers' leadership behaviors directly and indirectly influence job satisfaction, which influences salespeople's propensity to leave the organization and actual turnover.     

Locus of Control,Machiavellianism, and Managerial Job Performance

In this study, we examined the moderating effect of locus of control on the relationship between Machiavellianism and job performance of store managers in a retail setting. Our results indicated a significant moderating effect for managers who perceive that they have an external control orientation but not for managers with an internal control orientation.     

Agoraphobia and Locus of Control

This study investigated whether external locus of control, as measured with the Rotter Internal-External Locus of Control Scale, is a specific feature of agoraphobia or whether it characterizes neurosis in general. Forty agoraphobic patients, 81 nonagoraphobic neurotic controls, and 49 normal controls completed the Dutch version of the Rotter Internal-External Locus of Control Scale. Agoraphobic patients were found to have a more external orientation as compared to the normal controls, but as a group, they could not be identified as being different from neurotic controls.This study was supported in part by a grant from the Dutch Organization for Fundamental Research (ZWO/Psychon 560-268-001).     

心理控制源与抑郁

本文回顾了心理学领域中关于心理控制源的几种理论．重点介绍了罗特的心理控制源理论。此外,还介绍了关于心理控制源与抑郁之间相关性,以及心理控制源与认知行为疗法(CBT)治疗抑郁症之间相关性的以往研究结果,并指出以往研究的局限及未来研究的方向。     

Shame,Self-Consciousness,and Locus of Control in People Who Stutter

Stuttering is a multidimensional disorder, including psychological as well as physiological elements. This investigation of the value of 3 psychological constructs (shame, self-consciousness, and locus of control) in the prediction of 3 self-reported behavioral dimensions of stuttering (struggle, avoidance, and expectancy) revealed shame and self-consciousness to be significant psychological predictors of the selected dimensions of stuttering, whereas locus of control was found not to be. Certain demographic elements, including affiliations with others who stutter, were also determined to be predictive of the stuttering dimensions. The present findings and their implications for theory, research, and practice are discussed.     

Maternal Control Behavior and Locus of Control: Examining Mechanisms in the Relation Between Maternal Anxiety Disorders and Anxiety Symptomatology in Children

This study tested components of a proposed model of child anxiety and examined the mediational roles of (1) maternal control behavior, (2) maternal external locus of control, and (3) child external locus of control in the association between maternal and child anxiety. Thirty-eight clinically anxious mothers and 37 nonanxious mothers participated along with one of their children aged 6 to 14 (52.0% female; 78.7% Caucasian). Path analysis indicated that the overall model fit the data very well. Analyses also indicated that child external locus of control mediated the associations between (1) maternal and child anxiety and (2) maternal control behavior and child anxiety. Maternal anxiety was not related to maternal control behavior and maternal external locus of control was not associated with child anxiety. Findings are discussed in the context of theoretical models (e.g., Chorpita and Barlow 1998) regarding the transmission of maternal anxiety to their children and the specific roles of maternal behavior and child locus of control.     

Psychotherapy of Schizophrenics in Small Groups

Abstract

I describe aspects of a multimodal presentation sponsored by a professional organization of group psychotherapists, entailing lecture and discussion, a small demonstration or fishbowl group, and a large group experience. As the invited presenter, I was being counted on to attract attendees, to stimulate and maintain their interest, and to draw enthusiasm to the host organization and its future conferences. This required, in short order, promoting cohesion, establishing norms, and creating a safe enough culture to embrace challenge, to take risks, to learn, and to seek help. Events occurring in both the larger and smaller groups were to be utilized for the benefit of the individuals and the groups themselves, to make the experience interesting and sufficiently compelling, to teach the basic principles promised by the conference’s theme, and to demonstrate technique. Dysfunction or negative consequences were to be avoided. My mode of leadership was perceived by some as positive if not outrageous, but for others it just provoked outrage. Perhaps such reactions are to be expected whenever a leader challenges a group to experience and think in new ways. I tried to utilize the ensuring controversy to illustrate the conference’s topic: loving, hating, and curiosity—group processes of resistance, rebellion, and refusal.     

Locus of Control and Implicit Memory

Two experiments were conducted to investigate the influence of locus of control on implicit and explicit memory. We hypothesized that internals would rely on semantic processing, externals on perceptual processing. In Experiment 1, 80 college students studied 36 words and completed an implicit memory test in either a consistent or cross-modality condition. The results revealed that externals had higher priming scores than did internals, regardless of modality. In Experiment 2, 80 college students took either an implicit or explicit test. The results again revealed that externals showed higher priming scores than internals. The higher priming scores exhibited by the externals do not necessarily mean that they are more perceptually oriented than the internals are.