Locus of Control

[Wolfstarr]

Locus of Control

By Dr. John H. Sklare
Saturday, September 2, 2006



There is a concept in psychology called locus of control. Originally developed within the framework of John Rotter's (1954) social learning theory, locus of control refers to whether or not individuals believe that the events of their lives are related to their own behavior. According to Rotter, there are two possibilities here: You either have an internal or an external locus of control.

In short, internal locus of control refers to the perception of positive or negative events as being a consequence of your own actions and thereby under your own personal control. External locus of control refers to the perception of positive or negative events as being unrelated to your own behavior and thereby beyond your personal control. In a nutshell, those with an internal locus of control tend to take personal responsibility for their life and their behavior and those with an external locus of control tend to take very little personal responsibility for their life and their behavior. In short, those with an external locus of control have a tendency to blame others for their problems.

So I suggest you give this some thought today and see if you can identify where you are in this area. Do you have an internal or an external locus of control? The answer to this question creates the framework for the life you live.