Name Date Section
Locus of Control  

For each of the following statements, indicate the extent to which you agree or disagree by selecting the appropriate response.

1. Whether or not I get to be a leader depends mostly on my ability.
2. To a great extent my life is controlled by accidental happenings.
3. I feel like what happens in my life is mostly determined by powerful people.
4. Whether or not I get into a car accident depends mostly on how good a driver I am.
5. When I make plans, I am almost certain to make them work.
6. Often there is no chance of protecting my personal interests from bad luck.
7. When I get what I want, it's usually because I'm lucky.
8. Although I might have good ability, I will not be given leadership responsibility without appealing to those in positions of power.
9. How many friends I have depends on how nice a person I am.
10. I have often found that what is going to happen will happen.
11. My life is chiefly controlled by powerful others.
12. Whether or not I get into a car accident is mostly a matter of luck.
13. People like myself have very little chance of protecting our personal interests when they conflict with those of strong pressure groups.
14. It's not always wise for me to plan too far ahead because many things turn out to be a matter of good or bad fortune.
15. Getting what I want requires pleasing those people above me.
16. Whether or not I get to be a leader depends on whether I'm lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time.
17. If important people were to decide they didn't like me, I probably wouldn't make many friends.
18. I can pretty much determine what will happen in my life.
19. I am usually able to protect my personal interests.
20. Whether or not I get into a car accident depends mostly on the other driver.
21. When I get what I want, it's usually because I worked hard for it.
22. In order to have my plans work, I make sure that they fit in with the desires of people who have power over me.
23. My life is determined by my own actions.
24. It's chiefly a matter of fate whether or not I have a few friends or many friends.

Scoring

Below are your scores for the items listed for each of the three parts of the scale.

Internal Locus of Control (items 1, 4, 5, 9, 18, 19, 21, and 23):

Score:

Powerful Others (items 3, 8, 11, 13, 15, 17, 20, and 22):

Score:

Chance (items 2, 6, 7, 10, 12, 14, 16, and 24):

Score:

Your scores should be between 0 and 48. A high rating on the Internal Locus of Control scale indicates that you have a strong internal locus of control. An internal locus of control can be helpful for successful behavior change.

High ratings on either the Powerful Others scale or the Chance scale indicate a strong external locus of control. If you rate high on the Powerful Others scale, you typically believe that your fate is controlled by other people; if you rate high on the Chance scale, you believe your fate is controlled by chance.



QUIZ SOURCE: Levenson, H. 1973. Multidimensional locus of control in psychiatric patients. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 41: 397-404. Used with permission of the author.

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