Being surrounded by peers who are accepting of aggression is a significant predictor of the development and persistence of aggression in childhood and adolescence. Whereas past research has focused on social reinforcement mechanisms as the underlying processes, the present longitudinal study analysed the role of external control beliefs as an…

In a prospective longitudinal study the authors examined the associations between parent locus of control of reinforcement (LOCR), measured before the birth of a child, and behavioral-emotional outcomes in that child at age 7 years. A total of 307 couples completed questionnaires regarding their emotional status and LOCR at their first prenatal…

Depressive realism consists of the lower personal control over uncontrollable events perceived by depressed as compared to nondepressed individuals. In this article, we propose that the realism of depressed individuals is caused not by an increased accuracy in perception, but by their more comprehensive exposure to the actual environmental…

One aspect of personality, perceptions of internal versus external control of reinforcement, shifts under conditions of change. This review of the literature examines the relationship between planned organizational change and locus of control. The review includes literature from the disciplines of clinical and social psychology, adult development,…

Rotter's Index of generalized expectancies for the internal or external control of reinforcement has been shown to predict successfully a variety of behaviors. An important future use of this scale may be the examination of the predictive power of individual items rather than generalized expectancies. (EK)

Fourth and fifth grade girls observed a reward, punishment, or neutral outcome to a game played by a person who chose to or was forced to play. Children, who observed the punished model, appreciated her lack of deservingness. Results were interpreted in terms of the just-world hypothesis. (ST)

Reid and Zeigler's Desired Control Measure (DCM); Levenson's Internal, Powerful Other, and Chance Locus of Control scales, Life Satisfaction Index; and Affect Balance Scale were completed by 363 older adults. The DCM apparently does not primarily tap locus of control and would be more appropriately used as a measure of individuals' perceptions of…

Internal and external locus of control subjects were tested on three verbal recognition memory tasks. Subjects administered self-reinforcement on first and third tasks. The second task was accompanied by experimenter reinforcement. There were no differences in self-reinforcement base rate but there were several significant and contrasting changes…

The effects of extent and kind of external control during training on later resistance to temptation were examined in preschool children. Boys transgressed significantly more quickly than girls. (ST)

This study presents reliability and validity evidence concerning a new measure of a generalized locus of control for children. Construction procedures leading to the final 40-item scale are described. (Author)

Investigated the degree to which an individual disregards information about himself and his environment, as a function of his locus of control patterns, and hence is less responsive to or influenced by a given segment of information. Subjects were 341 fourth- and fifth-grade children. (SDH)

Four tests, ostensibly designed to measure IQ, were described to internally and externally oriented subjects. For two of the tests, the experimenter's descriptions of the tests included "built-in" rationalizations designed to provide the subjects with potential explanations for any test failures. Externals demonstrated greater preference for the…

This investigation was designed to provide information about two issues: the nature of internal-external differences in self-reinforcement behavior and the source of those differences. (Author/RK)

The purpose of this study was to extend the generality of research on the relationship between locus of control in children and achievement to a group of emotionally disturbed children. Results indicate that those emotionally disturbed children who perceive a relationship between their behavior and the resulting consequences obtain higher…