Locus of Control
Rotter, J. B. · 1966
Also known as: IPC Locus of Control · Levenson LOC
Locus of control is the generalised expectancy about where the causes of one's outcomes lie. Rotter's original formulation was a single internal-external dimension; Levenson's influential revision split the external pole into two, because attributing outcomes to powerful other people and attributing them to chance have different psychological consequences. The resulting three dimensions — internality, powerful others, chance — can be held simultaneously and in different degrees, which is why a single internal-external score conceals more than it reveals.
Theory distinguishing three dimensions of perceived control: Internality (belief that outcomes are determined by one's own actions), Powerful Others (belief that powerful people control outcomes), and Chance (belief that luck and fate determine outcomes).
- Source:
- Levenson, H. (1981). Differentiating among internality, powerful others, and chance. In H. Lefcourt (Ed.), Research with the Locus of Control Construct (Vol. 1, pp. 15-63).
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Evidence at a glance
- Empirical support
- Strong evidence
- Replication
- Well replicated
- Cross-cultural
- Culture-specific
- Meta-analyses
- 20 indexed
These ratings summarise the published literature on the theory, not the quality of any single test built on it. They are editorial judgements based on the sources listed below, and they change as evidence accumulates.
Historical Context
Rotter introduced the construct in 1966 within social learning theory, and the I-E Scale became one of the most-cited instruments in psychology's history. Levenson's 1973 IPC scales split the external dimension after showing that the two kinds of externality diverged empirically. Domain-specific versions followed — health, work, academic — after it became clear that a general expectancy predicted domain outcomes poorly. Bandura's self-efficacy construct, arriving in 1977, absorbed much of the theoretical territory by specifying capability beliefs about particular tasks rather than generalised expectancies.
Constructs
Internality
Belief that outcomes are determined by one's own actions and efforts (Levenson, 1981).
Powerful Others
Belief that powerful people control outcomes and events in one's life (Levenson, 1981).
Chance
Belief that luck, fate, and chance determine outcomes (Levenson, 1981).
Instruments
- IPIP Locus of Control Scales(IPIP-LOC)Goldberg, L. R. (IPIP), measuring constructs of Levenson, H.1999
Tests built on this theory
Practical Applications
Internal locus of control predicts health behaviour, academic achievement, job performance and job satisfaction, with effects that are small but replicable across many decades and samples. The health-specific version is used in behavioural medicine to predict treatment adherence and self-management. In organizational research it is one component of the core self-evaluations construct. In self-knowledge work the three-dimensional reading is the useful part: believing that powerful other people determine outcomes is a different situation from believing that chance does, and calls for a different response.
How It's Measured
Measured with self-report Likert items (Levenson IPC form) yielding three independent dimension scores; the older forced-choice I-E format produces a single bipolar score and is largely superseded.
Critiques & Limitations
Generalised locus of control predicts domain-specific behaviour weakly, and most of its practical value has migrated to domain-specific measures and to Bandura's self-efficacy. Rotter's original forced-choice format is psychometrically awkward and yields low internal consistency. The construct is also culturally loaded: internality is treated as the adaptive pole, which reflects an individualist assumption, and in collectivist contexts and among people facing genuine structural constraint, high internality can be unrealistic rather than healthy. Meta-analyses further show that internality overlaps substantially with emotional stability and self-esteem.
Key Publications
- Rotter, J. B.. (1966). Generalized expectancies for internal versus external control of reinforcement. 10.1037/h0092976
- Levenson, H.. (1973). Multidimensional locus of control in psychiatric patients. 10.1037/h0035357
- Judge, T. A., Erez, A., Bono, J. E. & Thoresen, C. J.. (2003). The core self-evaluations scale: Development of a measure. 10.1111/j.1744-6570.2003.tb00152.x