Adjustment and Situationally-Bound Locus of Control Among Institutionalized Aged

Abstract

The relationship between perceived locus of control and adjustment among institutionalized aged was examined using residents' solutions to hypothetical problems as the measure of perceived control. The hypothesis that locus of control would relate positively to adjustment was upheld in four hypothetical situations. These included problems related to environmental ambiguity, autonomy, emotional expression, and privacy. In five of the six significant relationships, externally rather than internally perceived control was found to relate to good adjustment. Perceived locus of control thus appears to have a different meaning in institutional settings where persons external to the individual may function as intermediaries between the powerless self and a rigid institutional environment.