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This study was designed to explore the differences between locus of control (LOC) in children from civilian and military families and to investigate whether military deployment is associated with an external locus of control more than other family dynamics. The literature has focused on the negative implications of external LOC for children’s mental health and achievement as well as in childhood chronic illness, parental absence, and parental alcoholism. However, prior research regarding this construct related to children of military families is significantly lacking. In the present study, LOC was measured by the Nowicki-Strickland Locus of Control Scale for Children, a 40 question scale designed for individuals within the range of 3rd to 12th grade. The 54 participants in this study ranged in age from 7 to 17 and came from either a military family with a deployed parent, a civilian family with two caregivers in the home, or a divorced - separated civilian family. A univariate one-way ANOVA was conducted on the data. It was found that children of deployed military families did not score significantly different for mean locus of control than civilian separated/divorced families, or civilian intact families. A correlation comparing age and LOC scores found no significant relationship. Limitations of this study included a small sample size due to time restrictions, and subsequently reduced statistical power. Future investigations into LOC should continue to explore its relationship with children in military families, as future studies correcting for sampling may obtain significant results. Further research should also probe more deeply into the negative and positive consequences that external and internal attributional tendencies may have for children’s development, academic performance, and overall well-being.

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of various navigational control options within a hypermedia learning environment on the performance of students who differed in their locus of control orientations. Ninety-three college students were classified as internal or external in their locus of control orientation based on their scores on the Adult Nowicki-Strickland Locus of Control Scale (ANSIE). They were then randomly assigned to one of three treatment groups that differed in the way participants navigated through a hypermedia instructional program dealing with the human heart. In the Linear group, participants navigated through the program in a standard linear fashion. In the Branching group, participants navigated through the program with the help of a hierarchical menu structure. In the Networked group, participants had the additional option of using embedded (associative) hyperlinks. At the conclusion of the program, participants completed a posttest that assessed two types of learning. A 2 X 3 Analysis of Variance was conducted to explore the main effects for locus of control (internal and external) and navigational control (linear, branching, and networked) and any interaction effect between the two factors. The results showed no significant differences in achievement based on participants' locus of control orientation or treatment group. There was also no significant interaction observed. The results provided no support for the hypothesis that different navigation options would improve the performance of learners differing in their locus of control orientation. / Ph. D.

Anställdas upplevda kontroll över sin arbetssituation varierar från person till person och kan till viss del bero på deras ålder och hur de upplever sin omgivning på arbetsplatsen. Studiens syfte var att undersöka eventuella samband mellan Work Locus of Control och upplevt organisationsstöd, arbetstillfredsställelse och ålder. Datainsamlingen genomfördes genom att dela ut en enkät till anställda tjänstemän med administrativa arbetsuppgifter inom offentlig och privat sektor i södra Sverige. Urvalet består av 74 deltagare (17 män och 57 kvinnor). För att mäta variablerna användes Work Locus of Control-skalan, items ur Survey of Perceived Organizational Support samt Overall Job Satisfaction. Enkäten inkluderade även bakgrundsfrågor. En korrelationsanalys med variablerna gav resultatet att Work Locus of Control har signifikanta samband med de undersökta variablerna. Resultaten går i linje med tidigare forskning och indikerar att personer som i större grad upplever sig kunna kontrollera sin arbetssituation även upplever högre organisationsstöd och högre arbetstillfredsställelse, samt att den upplevda kontrollen är högre hos äldre individer. En multipel regressionsanalys visar att hög arbetstillfredsställelse bäst predicerar en intern Work locus of Control. Resultaten visar inte någon signifikant skillnad i Work Locus of Control mellan anställda inom offentlig och privat sektor. / Employees' perceived control over their work situation varies from person to person and can to some extent depend on their age and how they perceive their environment in the workplace. The purpose of this study was to investigate possible connections between Work Locus of Control and Perceived Organizational Support, Job Satisfaction and age. Data collection was performed by handing out a survey to officials with administrative duties within the public and private sectors in southern Sweden. The sample consists of 74 participants (17 men and 57 women). To measure the variables, the Work Locus of Control Scale, items from the Survey of Perceived Organizational Support and Overall Job Satisfaction, were used. The survey also included background questions. A correlation analysis of the variables yielded that the work locus of control scale has significant correlations with the studied variables. The results are in line with previous research, indicating that individuals which to a greater extent perceive themselves able to control their work situation also experience higher organizational support and higher job satisfaction, and that perceived control is higher for older individuals. A multiple regression analysis shows that a high Job Satisfaction is the best predictor of an internal Work Locus of Control. The results show no significant difference in Work Locus of Control between employees in the public and private sectors.

The primary objective was to determine whether there is a relationship between emotional intelligence, locus of control and sense of coherence in a market research organisation. A secondary objective was to determine whether individuals from various biographical groups differed significantly in terms of emotional intelligence, locus of control and sense of coherence. A sample of 179 participants completed the Bar-On EQ-i, Locus of Control Inventory and Sense of Coherence Scale. There was a statistically significant relationship between emotional intelligence, locus of control and sense of coherence. No significant gender differences were found. Furthermore, the findings showed differences between occupational levels in terms of both internal locus of control and sense of coherence, but not for emotional intelligence. No significant differences were evident between education, work experience or age in terms of the three constructs. An emotional intelligence intervention programme was recommended, as well as the use of an emotional intelligence assessment instrument. Recommendations for future research included broadening the relevance of the results. / Industrial and Organisational Psychology / M.A. (Industrial and Organisational Psychology)

The relationship between an individual's level of spirituality, health locus of control, and participating in wellness activity was investigated. The relationship between spirituality, health locus of control on physical health was also investigated. The research question was based on prior studies that reported people who are more spiritual are healthier. Does their spirituality lead to increased levels of health, or are individual's who are more spiritual more likely to proactively take control of their health and engage in health promoting behaviors? One hundred and fifteen male and female employees completed The Spiritual Involvement and Beliefs Scale (SIBS), a spirituality measure, The Multidimensional Health Locus of Control Scale, a measure of locus of control related to health and healthcare, and The Center for Disease Control's (CDC) Health Risk Appraisal, a self-report measure of participation in health behaviors. Physical measures of health were obtained by obtaining Body Mass Index, blood pressure readings, and a cholesterol screening. The current study looked at level of spirituality (internal, external), level of health locus of control (internal, powerful other, chance) and participation in wellness/health promoting behaviors and health. Correlational analyses were performed on the relationship between spirituality and health locus of control. Hierarchical multiple regressions were performed on the internal spirituality and internal health locus of control to examine the relationship between spirituality, health locus of control and positive health behaviors and level of physical health. Stepwise discriminant function analysis using spirituality and health locus of control as predictor variables for the health-behavior criterion variables were performed. Discussion of the results, limitations of the current study and recommendations for future research were presented.

The purpose of this study was to test for a relationship between locus of control and participation in strategic decision making. The research model included the variables of gender, locus of control, job-work involvement and preference for participative environment as possible influences on team member participation in strategic decision making. Another feature of the model was the proposed three-way interaction effect on member participation. This interaction included member job-work involvement, member preference for participation and leader locus of control.

Le Burkina Faso fait face à la récurrence du faible rendement scolaire, lequel constitue une menace sérieuse pour le développement économique et social du pays. Les explications que l’on donne à ce constat font intervenir des facteurs d’ordre économique, politique, social, pédagogique, géographique. Très peu de place est accordée à la psychologie. Or, la recherche savante est suffisamment édifiante aujourd’hui sur le rôle séminal du facteur psychologique dans l’orientation des conduites humaines d’une manière générale, dans les conduites scolaires d’une manière spécifique. Parmi les facteurs psychologiques dont le rôle est souligné dans la littérature, il y a l’estime de soi et le locus de contrôle. La présente recherche se propose d’examiner les liens entre ces deux variables psychologiques et les performances, chez des apprenants en début et à la fin de l’adolescence, dans le contexte socio-économico-culturel du Burkina Faso. A l’aide de questionnaires d’estime de soi et de questionnaires de locus de contrôle, nous avons réalisé une série de trois études sur un échantillon de six cent quatre-vingts seize élèves filles et garçons de CM2 & de 3ème. Les performances scolaires ont été mesurées à partir des notes en situation d’évaluation classe et en situation d’évaluation indépendante. Les données recueillies et analysées mettent en évidence des liens, somme toute, modestes entre estime de soi et performances scolaires, entre locus de contrôle et performances scolaires tout au long des trois études. / The Burkina Faso faces the recurrence of poor academic performance, which is a serious threat to economic and social development. The explanations we give to this observation involve economic factors, political, social, educational, geographical. Very little attention is paid to psychology. But scholarly research is sufficiently instructive today on the seminal role of psychological factor in shaping human behavior in general, in the school conducted in a specific way. Among the psychological factors whose role is emphasized in the literature, there is the self-esteem and locus of control. This research will examine the links between these psychological variables and performance among learners in the beginning and the end of adolescence, in the socio-economic-cultural context of Burkina Faso. Using questionnaires of self-esteem and locus of control questionnaires, we conducted a series of three studies on a sample of six hundred and eighty six male and female students of CM2 and third. School performance was measured from notes in class Assessment situation and in a situation of independent evaluation. Data collected and analyzed highlight links, overall, modest between self-esteem and school performance between locus of control and academic performance throughout the three studies.

A impotência, como uma das possíveis respostas psicossociais ao adoecer, caracteriza uma necessidade de cuidado de enfermagem. A descrição dos indicadores dessa resposta em pacientes pós-operados por insuficiência coronariana e disfunção valvar foi o núcleo do presente estudo. Os objetivos foram: descrever a impotência quanto à freqüência, intensidade e características definidoras, comparar a impotência (freqüência e intensidade) e o “locus de controle" entre os pós-operados por insuficiência coronariana e disfunção valvar, verificar a existência de associação entre impotência e o “locus de controle" nessa amostra. A coleta de dados foi feita por entrevista com base em dois instrumentos: o primeiro construído especificamente para este estudo, para avaliar a impotência, e o segundo foi a Escala de Locus de Controle da Saúde de WALLSTON, K.A; WALLSTON, B.S; DEVELLIS (1978). Houve um julgamento quanto à presença e intensidade do diagnóstico impotência. As dimensões avaliadas pela Escala de Locus de Controle foram: interno, externo e acaso. Esses procedimentos foram realizados junto a 75 doentes, sendo 45 com insuficiência coronariana e 30 com disfunção valvar, sendo 62,7% do sexo masculino; idade média de 57,2 anos; escolaridade média de 6,4 anos; tempo médio de pós-operatório à coleta dos dados de 7,5 dias. Dos 75 pacientes, 44 apresentaram impotência (leve=20; moderada= 15 e intensa= 9). Das 17 características definidoras estudadas, 12 foram significativamente mais freqüentes em nível de 5% de significância nos doentes com impotência. As proporções de impotentes nos dois grupos de pacientes com insuficiência coronariana e disfunção valvar foram semelhantes, não havendo diferenças estatisticamente significantes (p=0,848). Os pacientes pós-operados coronarianos acreditavam mais em fatores internos como fonte de controle dos que os pacientes de disfunção valvar (“locus" interno p=0,001; internalidade total p=0,002) Não houve associação entre impotência e “locus de controle" em nível de 5%, sugerindo que as dimensões de “locus de controle" não são atributos isolados essenciais do conceito de impotência. Os resultados deste estudo permitiram estabelecer outras questões de pesquisa e corroboram a importância do desenvolvimento do conhecimento sobre as respostas psicossociais do doente em situações médico-cirúrgicas. / Powerlessness as one of the possible psychosocial responses of illness, characterizes a necessity for nursing care. The description of the indicators of this response in post-operative patients with coronary insufficiency and valve dysfunction was the core of this study. The objectives were: to describe powerlessness (frequency and intensity), and the “locus of control" between the post-operated patients for coronary insufficiency and valve dysfunction, and to verify the existence of association between powerlessness and the “locus of control". The data were obtained by means of interviews based on two tools: the first one was organized specifically for this study to assess powerlessness, and the second was the “Locus of Control Health Scale" of WALLSTON, K.; WALLSTON, B.S; DEVELLIS (1978). The presence and intensity of powerlessness was judged by the author. The “locus of control" dimensions assessed were: internal, external and chance. These procedures were carried out on 75 patients of which 45 had coronary insufficiency and 30 had valve dysfunction; 62.7% were male with mean age of 57.2 years; average schooling of 6.4 years; mean post-operative data collection time of 7.5 days. Of the 75 patients, 44 presented powerlessness (low=20; moderate=15; severe=9). Of the 17 defining characteristics studied, 12 were significantly more frequent (p0.05) for powerless patients. The proportion of powerlessness in the two groups (coronary insufficiency and valve dysfunction) were similar (p=0.848). The post-operated coronary patients believed more in internal factors than the patients with valve dysfunction (“internal locus" p=0.001; “total internality" p=0.002). There was no association between powerlessness and “locus of control" (p0.05), thus suggesting that the dimensions of “locus of control" are not, in essence, isolated attribute of the concept of powerlessness. The results of this study permitted further questioning of research and corroborated the importance of knowledge development on psychosocial responses of patients in medical-surgical situations.

OLIVEIRA, CASSIANA MORAIS DE. Fatores motivacionais relacionados ao início do tabagismo em estudantes adolescentes de Ribeirão Preto/SP. 2009. 134 f. Dissertação (Mestrado) Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, 2009. De acordo com a OMS, um terço da população mundial adulta é fumante. A dependência à nicotina associa-se a altas taxas de mortalidade, malefícios à saúde e seu controle é considerado um desafio à saúde pública. Um aspecto importante relacionado ao tabagismo é que seu início ocorre predominantemente na adolescência. O objetivo desta pesquisa foi estudar os fatores motivacionais associados ao início do tabagismo, na percepção de adolescentes fumantes e não fumantes. Trata-se de uma pesquisa com delineamento transversal, analítico, com amostra de conveniência. Utilizou-se uma abordagem metodológica quanti-qualitativa. Participaram 80 adolescentes, alunos do ensino médio de uma escola estadual de Ribeirão Preto/SP, de ambos os sexos, sendo 40 fumantes e 40 não fumantes. Foram utilizados um questionário para os pais, roteiro de entrevista semi-estruturada e a Escala Multidimensional de Locus de Controle para os adolescentes. A média de idade para fumantes foi 16,8 e para não fumantes 16,2 anos. Notou-se uma proporção maior de mães dos adolescentes fumantes sem relacionamento estável. Observou-se maior utilização de bebida alcoólica entre os fumantes. O intervalo de idade mais freqüente de experimentação do primeiro cigarro foi 13 a 16 anos. Quanto ao consumo diário, 47,5% dos adolescentes relataram fumar 6 a 10 cigarros. Com relação à escala locus de controle, não foi observada diferença estatística significativa entre os fumantes e não fumantes. Na dimensão internalidade, os fumantes (52,5%) e os não fumantes (47,5%) apresentaram pontuações mais freqüentes acima da média. Na dimensão externalidade-outros poderosos, houve predominância de escores abaixo da média em ambos os grupos. Em externalidade-acaso, observou-se maior freqüência de escores acima da média para os fumantes (40,0%) e não fumantes (30,0%). Na análise qualitativa, entre os não fumantes, a maioria das meninas opinou que o que faz as pessoas começarem a fumar é o alívio de emoções negativas, e para os meninos é a imitação do modelo de um fumante. A maioria das respostas, nos dois gêneros, avaliou que o modelo de um fumante influencia o adolescente a começar a fumar. Sobre o que acham de pais fumantes, houve predomínio de verbalizações masculinas na categoria estimula a curiosidade dos filhos, e nas femininas na categoria não gosta. Sobre o que acham de amigos fumantes, verificou-se predomínio de verbalizações femininas nas categorias não gosta e normal, já as masculinas foram em prejudicando a sua saúde e das pessoas ao seu redor e não gosta. Na amostra de fumantes, as meninas opinaram que o que faz as pessoas começarem a fumar é o alívio das emoções negativas; os meninos associaram o início do tabagismo a aspectos da adolescência. Sobre o que influencia os adolescentes a começarem a fumar e sobre a opinião quanto a pais fumantes, ambos os gêneros destacaram a imitação do modelo. Observou-se predomínio, nos dois gêneros, de verbalizações nas categorias normal e má influência quanto a amigos fumantes. Espera-se que este estudo identifique elementos relevantes para subsidiar programas e pesquisas futuras de controle e prevenção do tabagismo. / According to the World Health Organization, one third of the worlds adult population smokes. Nicotine dependence is associated with high mortality rates and damage to health, and its control has been considered a challenge to public health. An important aspect related to tobacco smoking is that it begins predominantly in adolescence. The objective of this research was to study the motivational factors associated with the initiation of tobacco smoking from the perception of smokers and non-smokers adolescents. The research has, both, a transverse and analytical outline with a convenience sample. The quantitative and qualitative methodological approach was used. There were 80 participants, both female and male adolescent students from a public high school in Ribeirão Preto/SP. Forty were smokers and the other 40 non-smokers and the parents were asked to complete a questionnaire. A semi-structured interview and the Multidimensional Health Locus of Control scale were used. The mean age of smokers students was 16.8 years old, and 16.2 years old for non-smokers. We observed a higher proportion of non-stable relationships among the smokers adolescents mothers, as well as more frequent used of alcoholic drinks in the smokers group. The most frequent age range of the first smoked cigarette was between 13 to 16 years old. Regarding daily consumption, 47.5% of the adolescents reported to smoke from 6 to 10 cigarettes. Concerning the Locus of Control Scale, no substantial statistic difference was observed between the smokers and non-smokers groups. For the Internality dimension, both smokers (52.5%) and non-smokers (47.5%) showed more frequent above average scores. As for the Externality-powerful others dimension, there was predominance of below average scores in both groups. At the Externality-chance dimension, it was most frequently observed above average scores for smokers (40%) and (30%) for non-smokers. For the qualitative analysis, in the non-smokers sample, most girls stated that what makes people start smoking is the relief from negative emotions, and for the boys, it was the imitation of a smokers model. The most frequent response from both genders was that the model given by a smokers person influences the adolescent to start smoking. Concerning their thoughts about smokers parents, most of the boys verbalized their opinion in the category smokers parents stimulate childrens curiosity, while most girls verbalized their opinion in the dont like category. Regarding their opinion about smokers friends, there was a female predominance in the category dont like as well as in the normal category. The male predominance was in the categories damaging your health and the peoples health around you and in dont like. In the smokers sample, the girls stated that what makes people start to smoke is the relief from negative emotions. The boys associated the beginning of tobacco smoking with aspects of adolescence. Regarding what influences adolescents to start smokers and their opinion about smoking parents, both genders pointed out the imitation of the model. The predominance in both genders of opinions in the categories normal and bad influence about smokers friends was observed. It is expected that this study may identify important steps to subsidize future programs and researches about control and prevention of tabagism.