Locus of Control
Locus of Control refers to the extent to which individuals believe that they can control events that affect them. Individuals with a high internal locus of control believe that events result primarily from their own behaviour and actions. Those with a high external locus of control believe that powerful others, fate, or chance primarily determine events. Those with a high internal locus of control have better control of their behaviour and tend to exhibition more political behaviours than externals and are more likely to attempt to influence other people; they are more likely to assume that their efforts will be successful. They are more active in seeking information and knowledge concerning their situation than do externals. The propensity to engage in political behaviour is stronger for individuals who have a high internal locus of control than for those who have a high external locus of control.
18. I have an internal locus of control.
According to the test, I generally believe that internal factors like drive and free will define you more than external factors like genetics, fate, luck, and environment.
‘Tis true.
Today In Class
I learned that I have an internal locus of control. In fact, with a score of 22, I scored the most internal that you can be.
The teacher even joked that my test should be framed in honor of my controlling neurosis.
What are you like? Take the test here.
The Kids Are Actually Sort of Alright
nymag.comMy screwed, coddled, self-absorbed, mocked, surprisingly resilient generation.
About: Trying to define the TwentySomethings generation in the US.
The author: Noreen Malone
27, staff writer for New York’s Daily Intel blog.
Opposite Day
Unlike Jessica, most things never get to me. I am told that it is due to my absurdly internal locus of control. I just do not allow my emotions to take over in that way.
When something bad happens, I allow a very brief time for it to bother me and then tell myself that I don’t like the feeling so I just stop feeling it. Done and done. I’ve even had plenty of people give me massages and comment on my lack of tension and knots. Happened last night actually.
If only I could teach it.
Also, I am in no way implying that I am better or worse of than others. Having that much control in one’s own head definitely has its cons. I merely read her post and realized how I am so different in that way. Not just Jess, but most people that I know.
Maybe I really am a mandroid?
My capstone is a meta-analysis of research on the correlation between locus of control and marital satisfaction.
I intend to be a marriage counselor, so a topic related to marital satisfaction seemed like a good idea. For those who aren’t familiar with the concept of locus of control, here’s the Wikipedia article. If anyone is interested in reading my paper, it should be finished by the end of April.
Dante Headcanon: Personal Locus of Control in Respect to Life Outcomes
Oh hi. Join me today on a fabulous journey that is Social/Personality Psychology, and how it relates to Dante’s stupid life.
Locus of control is a theory that discusses the amount that a person believes that their actions will directly affect their life. People high in locus of control believe that everything they do affects them. People low in it believe that no matter what they do, they still have no control over what happens in their life.
Dante happens to be very high in locus of control both naturally and because of the amount of power that she holds. After so many years of being on top and seeing directly how her actions have shaped Amestris, it becomes difficult to not have a high locus of control and know that you’re making some kind of difference. BUT, should she suddenly find herself without much power at all (e.g., the fight with Tyranny), her locus of control plummets. Dante is not used to not being in control of her life, and the realisation that something she does may not work scares the hell out of her and leaves her broken in a corner like a wounded animal. She’s certainly still dangerous but also reckless and more prone to holding incorrect thoughts about how the situation played out.
Loci of Control
Season 9 Episode 9: The Apology
According to personality psychologist Julian Rotter, a person has either an internal or external locus of control.
George likely has an external locus of control - in his mind, the “whole universe” has more control over his life than he does. Someone with an internal locus of control, on the other hand,takes personal responsibility for his or her own situation.
Loci of Control
It seems to me that as human minds have gotten more complex, closer and closer to soul and spirit, the locus of control, or the area of existence that we seek to control, manipulate, and change — i.e. the area that factors most in our consciousness — changes with the development.
Before the differentiation of self and world, there was no specific locus, because subject and object were not quite differentiated, or at least organisms were not conscious of the differentiation. With the rise of primitive man the locus of control was the outside world: this can be demonstrated by animism, the belief that inanimate objects have wills and consciousness. Primitive men believed that by strong enough power of will they could simply change things around them. This confusion of subject and object also shows in babies and is elaborated upon further by Wilber in book one of SES.
When subject and object are comfortably differentiated, concrete operational societies, or societies framed around rules of basic logic and absolute dictums for citizens to follow. The locus of control here seems to me to be human behaviors, or the actual actions of the citizens around them. The exclusion of the inanimate world from this locus of control probably comes from the discovery that animate objects are the only things that can really be associated with, communicated with, or really controlled in a complex sense. Here control does not necessarily mean subjugation or servitude but rather, as I said before, focus for the organism.
The emergence of rational, Enlightenment society at the end of Medieval times brought with it the transition of the locus from human behavior to human thought. Debate, the rational quest for what is logically true, became prevalent as varying theories of government, theology, literature, and economics proliferated. The study of how the mind and its feelings work begetted psychology, especially the Freudian study of impulses. It was the quest of the thinkers, of the developed beings, not to influence only how their fellows acted, but how they thought; called into question now was the makeup of the mind, whether the truths reached by the mind were accurate, etc etc.
Now we are entering the future, with every passing moment, and the locus has changed, or is gradually changing from how we think to how we think about thinking — how we perceive our entire being. This is what various idealists call the Witness, the ever-present observer Augustine postulated many centuries ago. The most intelligent among us monitor not just what they think but how they think … thinking about thinking. Intelligence balloons and we are capable of adjusting our OUTLOOK, which I believe is the locus of the future. With a proper outlook we can find peace under any circumstances, which is part of what Zen teaches, in a way: to watch ourselves, to watch the higher part of ourselves.
Internal > External Locus of Control
I’ve always been comfortable with subscribing to the notion that life operates on an external locus of control. That is, everything that happens is because of “luck” or some other “greater force”; you’re just a participant. I never actively fought for anything or believed I had a personal stake in my future.
Now, i’ve been comfortable thinking like this for much of my life because it made sense … and life has been relatively decent for me. Everything I needed, I got easily. I say needed because I never really wanted anything. Like, really wanted.
Sure, I remember I really wanted to get this Micro Economics question right and it took me 3 hours to figure it out. I remember I really wanted a car and begged a straight a year for it from my parents and finally got a used one. I remember trying to figure out how to share network folders so my co-workers and I could access the same files from different computers and it took me an hour and a bunch of Google-ing … but I figured it out.
In retrospect now, I see the theme.
Nothing feels as good as putting in your effort, time and mind to something and getting the results you want. Wanting is half the battle, the other half is actively pursuing it.
Earlier this year, I made a resolution. It was a simple but far fetched dream disguised as a “motivator” for me to get my head in the game; to stop being a participant in life. The first step was doing something I have never done before - ask for help to get in the right direction. Eight months later, i’m headed in the right direction.
Everyone told me, “You never know until you try” and “What’s the worse that could happen? they reject you or you don’t get it. Big deal. At least you put yourself out there and you let people know you’re interested”
… words i’m only now starting to believe that applies to everything in life.
So what have I learned?
Patience, determinism and asking for what you want.
Oh, and allowing yourself to believe that you deserve the things you want.
Thoughts for the day.
1. Comment or reblog if you are interested in a murder mystery dinner.
2. Lately I have had a despairing feeling and I think I finally have a name for it. With all of the trouble the government and the world is providing I believe it is a loss of control. We don’t really control our lives anymore, do we?
3. I have decided to increase my odds at gaining ground in the economy. I figure along with hard work and education I might as well play the lottery each week. Playing the odds since they are all against me anyways.
4. I really want a Pumpkin Spice Latte. Also, I saved some GIFs.
