Co-operative education and the development of self-esteem, an internal locus of control and work habits

This study compared approximately 50 grade 12 students studying In th~ co-operative education mode with approximately 50 grade 12 students studying in a traditional English course. Measures of self-esteem, locus of control and work habits were compared before and at the conclusion of one semester's involvement in the different programs. Using Coopersmith's Self-Esteem Inventory, the students who had chosen to study in the co-operative education mode scored significantly higher than the students in the traditional course. At the end of the semester, the co-operative education students' scores remained significantly higher than the English students'. Although the test showed no sjgnifi~ant changes in self-esteem. anecdotal reports indicated that co-operative education students had increased self-esteem over the semester. No significant differences in locus of control were observed between the two groups at any time. Significant differences in work habits were observed. While both groups had the same number of absences and the same marks before taking these courses, students who were involved in co-operative education had significantly fewer absences and significantly higher marks than the students studying in the traditional course. Anecdotal reports also indicated an improv~ment in work habits for students who had been involved in co-operative education. Recommendations of the study are for further research to determine more exactly how self-esteem and work habits develop in co-operative education students. Also. students. parents, teachers. and administrators need to be made aware of the success of this program.

Social-cognitive antecedents of ambidextrous orientation in family-owned startups: The role of family ties, achievement motivation, and internal locus of control

Regulatory Focus Theory predicts that the motivation to self-regulate goal-directed thought and behavior depends on two distinct regulation strategies: a promotion focus based on attaining gains and a prevention focus based on avoiding losses. This study took a social-cognitive approach predicting that regulatory focus has an impact on how family startups (several family related founders) explore "new ideas", exploit "old certainties" and achieve the balance of both (ambidexterity), compared to lone founder startups (only one founder present). It was proposed that the social context of family ties among founders leads them to a prevention focus concerned with avoiding the loss of the socio-emotional benefits of those ties. In order to avoid such a loss, family founders were expected to increase their risk perceptions and thus, explore less than lone founders, who lack such socio-emotional ties. It was also proposed that two commonly used psychological traits in entrepreneurship research —achievement motivation and internal locus of control, predispose entrepreneurs to a promotion focus. Founders with a promotion focus, in turn, were hypothesized to lead startups to more risk-seeking behaviors and to more explorative orientation. The previous argument was used as a springboard to derive hypotheses about ambidexterity (the ability to exploit and explore simultaneously) and survival hazards. Using Regulatory Focus Theory, exploitative orientation, conceptualized as the motivational strength to continue on previous paths of action, was hypothesized to be not significantly different from that of lone founder startups. Taking previous arguments together, lone founder startups were hypothesized to be more ambidextrous than family startups. Finally, ambidexterity and internal locus of control were hypothesized to reduce survival hazards in family startups. The findings suggested that family startups explore less than lone founder startups even after controlling for group effects. Interesting but contradictory findings revealed that internal locus of control have both a positive direct effect and a positive interaction that increases the explorative and ambidextrous orientation gap of family startups over lone founder startups. As expected, ambidexterity and internal locus of control reduced survival hazards on family startups. Implications for practitioners were derived based on a sample of 470 nascent entrepreneurs.

Social-cognitive Antecedents of Ambidextrous Orientation in Family-owned Startups: The Role of Family Ties, Achievement Motivation, and Internal Locus of Control

Regulatory Focus Theory predicts that the motivation to self-regulate goal-directed thought and behavior depends on two distinct regulation strategies: a promotion focus based on attaining gains and a prevention focus based on avoiding losses. This study took a social-cognitive approach predicting that regulatory focus has an impact on how family startups (several family related founders) explore “new ideas”, exploit “old certainties” and achieve the balance of both (ambidexterity), compared to lone founder startups (only one founder present). It was proposed that the social context of family ties among founders leads them to a prevention focus concerned with avoiding the loss of the socio-emotional benefits of those ties. In order to avoid such a loss, family founders were expected to increase their risk perceptions and thus, explore less than lone founders, who lack such socio-emotional ties. It was also proposed that two commonly used psychological traits in entrepreneurship research --achievement motivation and internal locus of control, predispose entrepreneurs to a promotion focus. Founders with a promotion focus, in turn, were hypothesized to lead startups to more risk-seeking behaviors and to more explorative orientation. The previous argument was used as a springboard to derive hypotheses about ambidexterity (the ability to exploit and explore simultaneously) and survival hazards. Using Regulatory Focus Theory, exploitative orientation, conceptualized as the motivational strength to continue on previous paths of action, was hypothesized to be not significantly different from that of lone founder startups. Taking previous arguments together, lone founder startups were hypothesized to be more ambidextrous than family startups. Finally, ambidexterity and internal locus of control were hypothesized to reduce survival hazards in family startups. The findings suggested that family startups explore less than lone founder startups even after controlling for group effects. Interesting but contradictory findings revealed that internal locus of control have both a positive direct effect and a positive interaction that increases the explorative and ambidextrous orientation gap of family startups over lone founder startups. As expected, ambidexterity and internal locus of control reduced survival hazards on family startups. Implications for practitioners were derived based on a sample of 470 nascent entrepreneurs.

Somewhere between illusion of control and powerlessness : trying to situate the pathological gambler's locus of control

It has been suggested that pathological gamblers develop illusory perceptions of control regarding the outcome of the games and should express higher Internal and Chance locus of control. A sample of 48 outpatients diagnosed with pathological gambling disorder who participated in this ex post facto study, completed the Internality, Powerful Others, and Chance scale, the South Oaks Gambling Screen questionnaire, and the Beck Depression Inventory. Results for the locus of control measure were compared with a reference group. Pathological gamblers scored higher than the reference group on the Chance locus of control, which increased with the severity of cases. Moreover, Internal locus of control did show a curvilinear relationship with the severity of cases. Pathological gamblers have specific locus of control scores that vary in function of the severity, in a linear fashion or a non-linear fashion according to the scale. This effect might be caused by competition between "illusion of control" and the tendency to attribute adverse consequence of gambling to external causes.

The Importance and achievement of work values and locus of control as factors in work motivation

The present research study examined the relationships in a work motivation context among perceived importance and achievement of work values, locus of control and internal work motivation. The congruence of a work value was considered to be the discrepancy between the importance of a work value and the perceived achievement of that value. The theoretical framework utilized was based on a self-perpetuating cycle of motivation which included the perceived importance and achievement of work values and internal work motivation as separate and distinct, yet interrelated factors. It was hypothesized that individuals who experienced high congruence of work values would experience higher levels of internal work motivation than individuals who had low congruence of work values. It was also hypothesized that individuals who had an internal locus of control would experience more internal work motivation individuals well, the and have higher congruence of work values than who had an external locus of control. As possibility of locus of control as a moderator between importance of work values and internal work motivation was explored. Survey data were collected from 184 managerial level employees of the XYZ company during an ongoing training session. The following instruments were employed to measure the variables: Elizur's (1984) Importance of Work Values, Hunt and Saul's (1985) Achievement of Work Values, Hatfield, Robinson and Huseman's (1975) Job Perception Scale, a modified version of Rotter's (1966) I-E Locus of Control Scale and the Internal Work Motivation Scale (Hackman & Oldham, 1980) which is a part of the Job Diagnostic Survey. The findings indicated that locus of control was not a significant factor in determining congruence between work values or internal work motivation for this sample. Furthermore, locus of control was also found not to be a moderator between the importance of work values and internal work motivation. All individuals in this study had relatively high levels of internal work motivation. However, individuals who had higher congruence of work values did have significantly higher internal work motivation than those who had low congruence of work values for a majority of the 21 values. This was particularly true for the intrinsic values which included responsibility, meaningfulness and use of abilities. In addition, the data were analysed into a hierarchy of needs to indicate possible organizational development or human resource development needs for the XYZ corporation.

The role of leader-member exchanges in mediating the relationship between locus of control and work reactions

The relationship between locus of control, the quality of exchanges between subordinates and leaders (LMX), and a variety of work-related reactions (intrinsic/extrinsic job satisfaction, work-related well-being, and organizational commitment) are examined. It was predicted that people with an internal locus of control develop better quality relations with their manager and this, in turn, results in more favourable work-related reactions. Results from two different samples (N = 404, and N = 51) supported this prediction, and also showed that LMX either fully, or partially, mediated the relationship between locus of control and all the work-related reactions.

The role of leader-member exchanges in mediating the relationship between locus of control and work reactions

The relationship between locus of control, the quality of exchanges between subordinates and leaders (LMX), and a variety of work-related reactions (intrinsic/extrinsic job satisfaction, work-related well-being, and organizational commitment) are examined. It was predicted that people with an internal locus of control develop better quality relations with their manager and this, in turn, results in more favourable work-related reactions. Results from two different samples (N=404, and N=51) supported this prediction, and also showed that LMX either fully, or partially, mediated the relationship between locus of control and all the work-related reactions.

Locus of Control revisited: development of a new bi-dimensional measure

Locus of control (LOC) has a long tradition in Psychology, and various instruments have been designed for its measurement. However, the dimensionality of the construct is unclear, and still gives rise to considerable controversy. The aim of the present work is to present new evidence of validity in relation to the dimensionality of LOC. To this end, we developed a new measurement instrument with 23 items. The sample was made up of 697 Spanish participants, of whom 57.5% were women (M=22.43; SD= 9.19). The results support the bi-dimensionality of LOC: internal (α=.87) and external (α=.85). Furthermore, both subscales have shown adequate validity evidence in relation to self-efficacy, achievement motivation and optimism (r xy> .21). Statistically significant differences were found by sex (p < .05): men scored higher in external LOC and women in internal LOC. The validity evidence supports a two-dimensional structure for the LOC, and the measurement instrument developed showed adequate psychometric properties.

Locus of control and contraceptive knowledge, attitude and practice among university students

OBJECTIVE: To assess the relationship between locus of control and knowledge, attitude and practice regarding pill and condom use among university students. METHODS: The inquiry was developed in Campinas, a city in Southeastern Brazil, in 2006. A total of 295 adolescent newcomers to a public university answered a structured questionnaire and Levenson's multidimensional locus of control scale. The scores of the dimensions of locus of control were calculated and Spearman's correlation coefficient was used to assess their correlation with knowledge and practice concerning pill and condom use. In order to assess the relationship between the dimensions of locus of control and sociodemographic variables and variables related to the individuals' sex life, Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney tests were used. RESULTS: Male adolescents had higher scores of powerful others externality when compared to female adolescents (p=0.01). Students living alone had lower internality (p=0.01). When locus of control was compared to condom use in the first intercourse, considering only the 102 students who informed the age of the beginning of sexual activity, greater internality was found among male adolescents who did not use condoms (p<0.05). When the locus of control scores were correlated with contraceptive knowledge and practice, it was found that the higher the powerful others externality locus, the lower the adequate use of contraceptive methods (r = -0.22, p=0.03). CONCLUSIONS: The powerful others externality locus influences the practice of contraceptive use in this group of adolescents.

A Study of role conflict, role ambiguity, locus of control, job satisfaction and participation in decision making among front-line vocational service workers for mentally retarded adults

This study was an investigation of individual and organizational factors, as perceived by front-line vocational service workers from Adult Rehabilitation Centres (ARC Industries) for mentally retarded adults. The specific variables which were measured included role conflict/role ambiguity (role factors), internal/external locus of control (individual differences), job satisfaction with work and supervision (job attitudes) and participation in deci~ion making (organizational factor). The exploration of these constructs was conducted by means of self-report questionnaires which were completed by sixty-nine out of a total of ninety front-line employees. The surveys were distributed in booklet form to nine distinct rehabilitation facilities from St. Catharines, West Lincoln, Greater Niagara, Port Colborne, WeIland, Fort Erie, Hamilton, Guelph and Brantford. The survey data was evaluated by the statisti.cal Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) which used the Pearson Product Moment Correlation procedure and a compar~son of means test. A comparison of correlation coefficients test was also conducted. This statistical procedure was calculated mathematically. The results obtained from the statistical evaluation confirmed the prediction that self-reported measures of participation in decision making and satisfaction (work and supervision) would be negatively correlated with role conflict and role ambiguity. As well, the speculation that perceived satisfaction (work and supervision) would be positively correlated with participation in decision making was empirically supported. Internal and external locus of control did not contribute to a significant difference in r~sponses to role perceptions (conflict and ambiguity) , satisfaction (work and supervision) or the correlational relationship between participation in decision making and satisfaction (work and supervision). Overall, the findings from this study substantiated the importance of examining employee perceptions in the workplace and the interrelationships among individual and organizational variables. This research was considered a contribution to the general area of occupational stress and to the study of individuals in work organizations.

Temporal patterns of memory source incorporations into dreams and their relationships to dreamed locus of control

Les incorporations des mémoires épisodiques dans les rêves apparaissent en formes fragmentées et suivent un modèle temporel distinct qui suit une courbe sinusoïdale. Ce modèle est caractérisé par les incorporations immédiates, qui apparaissent 1-2 jours après l’événement (effet de résidus diurnes), et les incorporations tardives, qui apparaissent 5-7 jours après l’événement (effet de délai). Ces deux effets sont considérés comme des liens entre les processus de consolidation de la mémoire et la formation du rêve. Cette courbe temporelle a été observée pour une variété de stimuli expérimentaux. Cependant, aucune étude à date n’a démontré que le contenu des rêves réagit aux événements diurnes d’une manière plus générale et non-spécifique. Le but de notre étude était d’examiner si deux événements qualitativement distincts, un séjour nocturne au laboratoire (LAB), considéré comme un événement interpersonnel, et une tâche de réalité virtuelle (RV), considérée comme un événement non-interpersonnel, sont intégrés de façon différente dans le contenu onirique. Selon nos hypothèses, 1) les éléments spécifiques liés au LAB et à RV seraient incorporés dans les rêves avec des patrons tendances temporels différents, et 2) les incorporations spécifiques seraient associées à des changements plus généraux dans le locus de contrôle (LoC) du rêve. Vingt-six participants ont passé une nuit dans le laboratoire, ont été exposé à une tâche de RV, et ont rempli un journal de rêve pendant 10 jours. Les rapports de rêve ont été cotés pour les éléments spécifiques portant sur LAB et sur RV, et pour l'évolution générale de LoC du rêve. Nos deux hypothèses ont été confirmées: 1) les incorporations de LAB et RV sont négativement corrélées et apparaissent dans le rêve selon des modèles temporels différents. Les incorporations du LAB ont suivi une courbe sinusoïdale en forme de U, avec un effet de résidu diurne et un effet de délai. Les incorporations de RV ont suivi un patron différent, et ont eu un maximum d’incorporations au jour 4. 2) les scores du LoC du rêve étaient plus externes pour le jour 1 (max incorporations du LAB) et plus internes pour le jour 4 (max incorporations de RV). Ces modèles d'incorporation distincts peuvent refléter des différences dans la façon dont les deux événements ont été traités par les processus de consolidation de la mémoire. Dans ce cas, une expérience interpersonnelle (LAB) était incorporée plus tôt dans le temps. Les résultats suggèrent que LoC du rêve reflète les processus de mémoire plus généraux, qui affectent le contenu du rêve entier, et qui sont partiellement indépendants des incorporations spécifiques.

Differential moderating effect of locus of control on effect of driving experience in young male and female drivers

Investigations of relationships between the specific personality variable, locus of control (LOC, Rotter, 1966) and driver behaviour or accidents have returned contrasting results. Review suggests dependence on gender or experience characteristics of participants, suggesting these factors interact with LOC to influence driving. Relationships were investigated in terms of influence on the eight driving styles of the Multidimensional Driving Style Inventory (MDSI, Taubman-Ben-Ari, Mikulincer & Gillarth, 2004) in young drivers (18-29 years). Gender and LOC differences in driving styles previously related to accidents were proposed. It was also proposed that driving experience influences driving style, and LOC influences effect of driving experience. Gender differences were found for dissociative, anxious, patient, risky, angry and high velocity styles. Women had more external LOC than men, and driver stress styles increased with more external LOC, but reduced with increased driving experience, but so did patient style. High velocity style increased with experience. Controlling for LOC revealed important gender differences in effect of experience: positive effects for men (reducing angry and high velocity, increasing carefulness) and negative effects for women (increasing angry and higher velocity, reducing carefulness). Findings suggest negative influence of high internal LOC on young men in terms of its interaction with experience.

Cervicogenic headache: Locus of control and success of treatment

Background.-A number of extraneous factors have been implicated in the effectiveness of treatment of headache, including patient beliefs about aspects of the treatment or persons delivering the treatment. Objective.-The concept of external locus of control for headaches refers to patients with a high level of belief that headache and relief are influenced primarily by health care professionals. The aim of this study was to examine whether external locus of control is associated with a reduction in frequency of cervicogenic headaches among patients treated by a physiotherapist. Design.-A recent randomized controlled trial of the effectiveness of physiotherapy among 200 patients with headache enabled a test of this relationship. Treatment consisted of manipulative therapy, therapeutic exercise, or a combination of the 2. Analysis of relative change in headache frequency was conducted after 6 weeks of treatment and at 3- and 12-month follow-up appointments. Results.-Results of the analysis indicated that participants with relatively high external Headache-Specific Locus of Control scores were more likely to achieve a reduction in headache frequency if they received the combined manipulative therapy and exercise therapy, compared with those who received no treatment. This was not determined for the group who received manipulative therapy, which is a treatment received passively by the patient. Conclusions.-The interpretation of these findings is considered in the context of nongeneralization to the other physiotherapy treatment groups and sustained reduction in headache frequency following withdrawal of treatment. The pattern of findings suggests that characteristics of the therapy were more pertinent than characteristics of the therapist.

Adaptação transcultural da escala Locus of Control of Behaviour para o português: versão para idosos

Objetivo Apresentar a adaptação transcultural da escala Locus of Control of Behavior (LCB) para a língua portuguesa falada no Brasil. Métodos O processo de adaptação foi realizado em cinco etapas: tradução, retradução, avaliação da equivalência entre a retradução e a escala original, elaboração de uma versão pré-teste e aplicação na população-alvo composta por 16 idosos (56 a 80 anos), com quatro anos mínimos de escolaridade. Resultados A versão adaptada não gerou problemas de compreensão, aceitabilidade ou impacto emocional negativo. Conclusão Este trabalho torna disponível a primeira versão em Português da LCB, uma escala que tem sido particularmente utilizada para avaliar o tipo de locus de controle (LoC) no que concerne ao prognóstico de tratamentos em saúde mental.