Investigated the concurrent validity of the Intellectual Achievement Responsibility Scale (IAR), an instrument which measures locus of control in academic achievement situations. Teachers from nine elementary schools rated students in grades 3-6 as internal or external in academic achievement situations. These ratings were then compared with the…

Cross-lagged correlational analyses and multiple-regression analyses of the data collected in these two studies supports the causal model that, while intentionality and internality both emerge when a common cognitive construct develops, heightened internality also significantly enhances a child's ability to learn intentionality. (Author/JMB)

Attempts to reevaluate the reliability characteristics of two scales used frequently in studies of children's locus of control; the Bialer scale and the Nowicki-Strickland scale. The study replicated and expanded upon earlier research by examining a wider range of grade levels and measures of children's locus of control expectancies. (Author/RH)

Using an open-ended questionnaire, 236 fifth- and sixth-grade pupils attributed their success or failure on a test given in their classroom to eight different causes. Results indicated that the pupils tended to attribute success mainly to external causes and failure mainly to internal causes. (JMB)

Tested whether intrinsic motivation depends on matching cognitive level and task demands and assessed effects of rewards and praise on intrinsic motivation. Children preferred tasks just beyond their ability levels. Praise had mixed effects: rewards decreased intrinsic motivation among highly motivated children but did not influence intrinsic…

Assessed children's beliefs about the effectiveness of five causes of school success. At the age of 7-8 years, children differentiated the factors into "unknown" and "other"; at 9-10, "other" was differentiated into "internal" and "external"; at 11-12, "internal" was differentiated into…