ABSTRACT
The perceived location of the source of CONTROL over one’s behavior. The word locus is Latin for place. So, if someone perceives that the forces that CONTROL what happens in his or her life lie outside them, perhaps with other people or with abstract forces over which they have little or no influence, then there is an external locus of control. Alternatively, the person might see themselves as an agent of his or her own destiny, believing in their own ABILITY to control events. In this case, there is an internal locus of control or locus of causality. Evidence from the 1990s suggests that the locus of control is more
multidimensional and that a person might perceive themselves as having an ability to control matters to a certain degree, at the same time believing that there are other factors that will exert influence, such as other, more powerful groups, institutional forces, or just LUCK. Dave Clarke’s 2004 study of gamblers reinforced this, while exposing the error of assuming that problem gamblers (who may have a DEPENDENCE) would perceive an external locus of control more strongly than casual gamblers. Even if they are do not have an OBSESSIVE-COMPULSIVE disorder, the likelihood seems to be that they would feel less in charge of their GAMBLING habit than other kinds of punters. Additionally, operant conditioning theory would suggest that the
intermittent REWARD of winning money should initially reward gambling behavior: Gamblers who regard their fate as being out of their hands have that PERCEPTION reinforced by losing more often than winning. So, external loci should be found among problem gamblers. Clarke found otherwise. In fact, locus of control was not a reliable indicator of problem gambling at all. Problem gamblers and nonproblem gamblers differed on the frequency with which they gambled, their parents’ gambling behaviors, impulsiveness, propensities to DEPRESSION, and, most significantly, MOTIVATION. But not on locus of control. Gamblers may attribute success to internal factors, skill being the main one, and losses to factors beyond their control. Locus of control, on this view, a combinational concept.
