Locus of control- resistance to social influence

what type of explanation is locus of control

dispositional

who developed locus of control theory

Rotter, 1966

what is Locus of control

an individual’s belief about the extent to which they control events in their lives

what are the two types of locus of controls

internal and external

internal locus of control

• believe they are responsible for own actions and outcomes

• more likely to resist social influence

• self-confident, stronger sense of personal responsibility

• less concerned with seeking approval from others

• believe have control over decisions, less likely to conform to group pressure/ obey authority figuresex

external locus of control

• believe their lives controlled by external factors, e.g. fate, luck

• believe they have little control over what happens to them

• more likely to conform to group norms/ obey authority figures as see these external forces as more powerful than their personal choices

strength- supporting research

research supporting the link between internal locus of control and greater resistance to social influence

Oliner and Oliner (1988)- individuals who rescued Jews during holocaust more likely to have an internal locus of control compared to those who did nothing

Holland (1967)- repeated Milgram’s obedience study, pps. with an internal locus of control more likely to resist obeying authority

strengthens idea personal control over one’s actions contributes to resistance

strength- emphasises individual differences

highlights role of personality in resisting social influence, unlike situational explanations

more comprehensive explanation- accounts why some ppls consistently resist pressure w/o external support

helps explain consistent behaviour across different situations, useful in understanding personal resilience + autonomy

weakness- too simplistic

assumes a distinction between internal and external orientations, IRL people shift between the two depending on context

e.g. may feel in control of academic success (internal) but believe health outcomes due to luck or genetics (external)

theory less accurate at predicting behaviour

weakness- overlooks situational factors

underestimates power of situation

Milgram: pps. with an internal locus of control were sometimes obedient when faced with powerful authority figure

external pressure can override personality traits

resistance a result of complex interaction between personality and situation