Atypical patterns in locus of control.

The article presents the results of a study conducted to find out the locus of control and adjustment in human beings. It is evident from the data that there is no simple relationship between locus of control and maladjustment. In every case, the subject variables used as moderators significantly affected the results. Specifically, two distinct patterns of expectancy for control were manifested by the problem children The essential characteristic of both of these patterns is a clear discrepancy between the assumption of responsibility for positive and negative events. The major conclusion from these data would seem to be that it is neither internality nor externality per se that is related to maladjustment behavior, but is instead the relationship between these two in regard to different kinds of events that is important. While it is not possible, of course, to disentangle the causal relationship between the variables in question using the present correlational design, the following hypothesis is offered as a possible explanation.