Hello there,

Our psychology class is back!

I have missed it a lot, just like you have, I believe.

We are going to talk about “Internal Locus of Control”.

That sounds like a very technical phrase but not to worry; we will dissect it together, alright?

 

I will start by asking you a question…

“Do you ever think about what controls the outcome of events in your life”?

 

Poster credit: Productive Club

 

Personally, I do.

Back then before joining psychology class, I did not know the technical name of this thing that could explain why things turn out the way they do.

When I joined the class, I got it’s technical name first.

It is called “locus of control”.

 

Locus of control has two sides;

There is the internal side of it and the external side of it.

For today, we will focus on it’s internal side.

 

Internal locus of control, by definition, is the degree to which people believe that they, as opposed to external forces (beyond their influence), have control over the outcome of events in their lives.

That is to say that people with a high internal locus of control perceives themselves as having a great deal of personal control over their behavior and are therefore more likely to take responsibility for the way they behave!

 

Photo credit: mathias sager

 

It should be mentioned that this concept of psychology has a lot to do with one’s personality among other things.

And that according to Simply Psychology, research has shown that people with an internal locus of control tend to be less conforming and less obedient (i.e. more independent).

Julian B. Rotter, the person who created this concept in 1954, proposes that people with an internal locus of control are better at resisting social pressure to conform or obey, perhaps because they feel responsible for their actions.

 

Now, you may be wondering how you would know if you are the type that subscribes to either the notion of internal or external locus of control.

There are ways we can measure that, psychologically.

 

These include use of tests like Rotter’s 1966 forced choice scale of 13 items of questions.

There is also Bialer’s (1961) 23-item scale for children.

There is also the Duttweiler (1984) Internal Control Index (ICI) questionnaire for adults.

 

Let this bit of information about locus of control sink in first.

We will be back next month with more on this and the external locus of control!

See you soon.