1. Presentation on Hock Chpt 7 “Are You the Master of Your Fate?”
MATTHEW ABBOTT
PHILLIP GRONEWOLD
RUSSELL KENNERLY
KATE LYON
DANIEL SCHLANGEN

2. Julian Rotter
Rotter, J. B. (1966). Generalized expectancies for internal versus external control of reinforcement. Psychological Monographs, 80,1-28.

3. Locus of Control
External Locus of Control: Consequences of behavior controlled by luck, fate, or powerful others
Internal Locus of Control: Consequences attributed to person’s behavior or personality characteristic

4. Rotter’s Social Learning Theory
Person’s tendency to view events from internal/external locus of control can be explained by SLT
Children may grow up with two different types of reinforcement:
Frequent experiences in which behavior influences reinforcement
Reinforcement appears to result from actions outside of themselves

5. Rotter’s Social Learning Theory
Leads to generalized expectancy about whether reinforcement is internally or externally controlled
Generalized expectancies result in different actions in specific conditions

6. Locus of Control Study Wanted to demonstrate two main points:
A test could be developed to reliably measure the extent to which individuals possess internal or external locus of control
People will display individual differences in interpretations of causes of reinforcement when facing the same situation
Compared behavior of internals vs. externals in numerous contexts

7. Method: I-E Scale
Designed scale containing series of pairs of statements
Each pair consisted of one statement reflecting internal locus of control and one reflecting external locus of control
Participants asked which they believed to be more true
Could not designate neither or both

8. Method: I-E Scale Examples
Question 1
Many of the unhappy things in people's lives are partly due to bad luck.
People's misfortunes result from the mistakes they make.
Question 2
Becoming a success is a matter of hard work; luck has little or nothing to do with it.
Getting a good job depends mainly on being in the right place at the right time.

9. Method: I-E Scale Fillers
Six filler items were added to disguise the true method or purpose of the test, e.g.:
Children get into trouble because their parents punish them too much.
The trouble with most children nowadays is that their parents are too easy with them.

10. Results
Rotter found a correlation found between I-E Scores and life situations such as:
Gambling
Political Activism
Persuasion
Smoking
Achievement Motivation
Conformity

11. Results Gambling Political Activism
Internals prefer to bet on sure things and tend to stay with intermediate odds
Externals tend to wager more money on risky bets and engage more in the gambler’s fallacy
Political Activism
Those who participated in marches and civil rights groups were generally more internally oriented

12. Results Persuasion Smoking
Internals are significantly more successful than externals in altering the moods of others
Internals are more resistant to manipulation by others 
Smoking
Smokers tend to be more external than nonsmokers
Those who quit after the Surgeon General’s warning was put on cigarette packs were more internally oriented

13. Results Achievement Motivation Conformity
Internals spent more time studying in high school
Internals had plans to attend college
Conformity
Internals conform less to majority than externals
Internals trust themselves more on making judgments opposite the majority than the externals

14. Discussion
Rotter proposed that the development of an internal or external orientation was due to three potential influences:
Cultural differences
Socioeconomic differences
Variations in styles of parenting
Rotter referred to several other studies for support

15. Conclusions The locus of control is a definable characteristic
The locus of control can be measured
The I-E Scale provides consistent results
Locus of control operates fairly consistently across various situations

16. Conclusions There are benefits to having an internal locus of control
Internals are more likely to:
Gain information from the situations in their life and improve future behavior to similar situations
Take the initiative to change and improve their life conditions
Place greater value on inner skill and achievement in goals
Be more resistant to manipulation by others

17. Subsequent Research
Strickland (1977) found internals generally take more responsibility for their own health and have lower stress levels
Research solidifying Rotter’s view of parenting style’s effect on locus of control
Sims and Baumann (1972) found internal orientation promotes life saving behaviors in catastrophic events

18. Subsequent Research
Yang and Clum (2000) found that external locus of control and low self-esteem, depression and suicidal tendencies are related
Welton (1996) found externals that perceive control by a higher power do not suffer the normal external’s problems

19. Questions Is a locus of control consistent over time?
Is a locus of control consistent across similar situations?
“Those who are externally oriented often will become more internal when their profession places them in positions of greater authority and responsibility. People who are highly internally oriented may shift toward a more external focus during times of extreme stress and uncertainty. Moreover, it is possible for individuals to learn to be more internal, if given the opportunity.” Hock 195.

20. Questions Is a locus of control learned?
Do people have an innate bias towards being internal or external?

21. Question
Can an individual change his/her locus of control?

22. Question
What do you think would happen if someone with an internal locus of control set out to change a situation that is not changeable?
Rotter, in his later writings, sounded a note of caution (see Rotter, 1975). Everyone, especially internals, must be attentive to the environment around them. If a person sets out to change a situation that is not changeable, frustration, disappointment, and depression are the potential outcomes. When forces outside of the individual are actually in control of behavioral consequences, the most realistic and healthy approach to take is probably one of an external orientation.