SOCIAL INFLUENCE Locus of control Social Psychology Miss Bird

What is ‘Locus of Control?’ A person’s perception of personal control over their own behaviour. Measured along a dimension of ‘ high internal ’ to ‘ high external.’

Locus of control High internals perceive themselves as having a great deal of personal control over their behaviour and are therefore more likely to take personal responsibility for it. What state can we link to high internals? High externals perceive their behaviour as being caused more by external influences and therefore are less likely to take personal responsibility for it e.g. fate or luck. What state can we link to high externals?

Locus of control Internal External LOCUS OF CONTROL A person believes their behaviour is caused primarily by their own personal decisions and efforts. A person believes their behaviour is caused primarily by fate, luck or by other external circumstances

Locus of control Characteristics of high internals: 1. Active seekers of information that is useful to them (less likely to rely on the opinions of others). 2. More achievement-orientated and consequently are more likely to become leaders. 3. Better able to resist pressure from others. Therefore if you have a high internal locus of control you are more likely to show independent behaviour.

Research For or against LoC? Read the two studies and the evaluation paragraph in your booklet. In pairs, discuss whether the research is supporting evidence for LoC or contradictory. Explain why in the box below the study and answer the questions. You have 10 minutes.

Evaluation The LoC scale includes 6 filler items which do not measure LoC. + These help to avoid demand characteristics and indicates that the scale has internal validity. - However it could also be argued that the scale is low in internal reliability.

RECAP: Research methods What is internal validity? Does it measure what it intended to measure? What is internal reliability? Is something consistent within itself? E.g. are all the questions on the locus of control scale measuring the same thing?

Individual differences Gender Survey data. 2,600 Russian employees. Significant gender differences. Men - internal locus of control and a need for challenge. Women - external locus of control and a need for affiliation.

Plenary Answer the past-exam question. It is worth 4 marks. This is to be done in silence! You have 5 minutes!

Explain what is meant by locus of control (4 marks) Mark scheme 1 mark = brief outline of what the ‘locus of control’ is. 3 marks = elaboration on key terms including ‘dimension,’ ‘internal’ and ‘external.’ 1 mark – explain what locus of control is. 2 marks – measured along a scale/dimension from internal to external. 3 marks – explain what is meant by internal locus of control. 4 marks – explain what is meant by external locus of control.

Explain what is meant by locus of control (4 marks) Exemplar answer Locus of control refers to a person’s perception of personal control over their own behaviour. This is usually measured along a dimension with internal control at one end and external control at the other. Internal control refers to those people who see that they have a great deal of control over their own behaviour and will take responsibility for their actions. External control refers to those who believe that their behaviour is controlled by other external (outside) forces such as luck or fate.