Doctoral Dissertations

Date of Award

12-1991

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy

Major

Education

Major Professor

Robert L. Williams

Abstract

This study represents an initial attempt to develop a personal control scale that distinguishes one's sense of control over external and intrapersonal events assumed to be highly controllable by the individual from events typically viewed as uncontrollable at an individual level. It was hypothesized that the more remote events are from one's personal purview, the greater the likelihood that perceived control over these events would be nonadaptive. On the other hand, perceived control over events that are truly controllable by an individual would likely be adaptive. The study had three broad objectives: (1) identify clusters reflecting different levels of controllability within the newly designed scale; (2) evaluate convergent validity of these clusters via comparisons with Rotter's I-E Scale; (3) evaluate concurrent and discriminant validity of these clusters by assessing relationships between the clusters and other psychological measures and demographic variables. A sample of 763 adults indicated the extent to which they could influence 72 life events or circumstances initially included in the new scale. Through a series of factor analyses, the new instrument (entitled the Personal Influence Form) was reduced to 34 items reflecting two broad conceptual factors. One factor represented events that would be highly controllable by most individuals and the second factor events that largely transcend individual control. The high control factor consisted of five quantitative clusters that related to the following types of life events: longevity, drug abuse, job status, close personal relationships, and general interpersonal events. In contrast, the low control factor consisted of only one quantitative cluster. Scores on the composite high and low control factors were not significantly related to each other. However, the high control clusters pertaining to longevity and job status were positively correlated with the low control total whereas the cluster pertaining to substance abuse was negatively correlated with the low control total. The correlation between close personal relationships and the low control total was not significant. The high control total yielded a -.26 r (p < .0001) with the Rotter, while the low control factor evidenced a near zero (r = .01) correlation with the Rotter. Concurrent validity was supported by the relationships between the high control clusters and measures of self-efficacy and perceived stress. The low control factor was only minimally related to these comparison variables. The item means for demographic subgroups were examined to evaluate the discriminant validity of the high and low control factors. No systematic associations between the factors and the demographic dimensions were anticipated, nor were they found. Both factors evidence high internal consistency and neither was related to the Marlowe-Crowne measure of social desirability.

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