Locus of Control and Learning Disabilities: A Review and Discussion

Abstract

It has been widely reported that an external locus of control is associated with children who experience failure. A review of the relevant literature indicates that learning disabled children, like other groups of children who have experienced failure, are more likely to exhibit an external locus of control than their normally achieving peers. In particular, learning disabled children have been found to be more likely than normally achieving students to attribute their successes, but not their failures, to external factors. The relationship of the locus of control construct to the field of learning disabilities is discussed in terms of four questions: (1) what is the relationship between locus of control and academic achievement?, (2) how is locus of control related to learned helplessness?, (3) is a change in locus of control orientation desirable?, and (4) what is the utility of locus of control for the education of learning disabled children? It is concluded that, in the course of remediation, attention should be devoted to the entire syndrome of characteristics associated with failure but within the context of academic intervention.

Perceptions of Classroom Environment, Locus of Control and Academic Attributions of Adolescents With and Without Cognitive Disabilities

“…This scale has reported split-half reliabilities ranging from .63 to .76 with test-retest reliability ranging from .63 to .76. The scale has been used previously with individuals with cognitive impairments, primarily with students with learning disabilities (Dudley-Marling, Snider and Tarver, 1982;Wehmeyer, 1993b). The ANS-IE has utility for individuals with mental retardation as well because it is written at a fifth-grade reading level and can be administered orally.…”

“…There is an emerging literature base indicating that students with mental retardation and learning disabilities hold perceptions that are not conducive to self-determination (Dudley-Marling, Snider & Tarver, 1982;Grolnick & Ryan, 1990;Wehmeyer, 1994a) and that such perceptions contribute at least partially to less than positive outcomes for youth and adults with cognitive disabilities (Wehmeyer, 1993a;1994b). However, there have been few efforts to examine students with cognitive disabilties perceptions of their classroom environment.The present study compared perceptions of control, classroom environment, and academic attributions of success and failure for students with mental retardation, learning disabilities and students without disabilities, and examined the relationship between students' self-perceptions and their perceptions of the classroom environment.…”

Psychological Adjustment and Family Functioning of Boys with Learning Disabilities

“…It has also been observed by professionals who work with children with LD that behavioral problems frequently exacerbate learning problems in the school setting, affect other important areas of a child's functioning, and contribute to long-range adjustment difficulties. Previous empirical studies of the psychosocial functioning of children with LD have tended to focus on a small number of problem areas, such as self-concept and locus of control (for reviews, see Bryan & Bryan, 1981;Dudley-Marling, Snider, & Tarver, 1982), and on measures within the school context such as teacher ratings and classroom observations (Epstein, Cullinan, & Lloyd, 1986).…”

The Association of Children’s Locus of Control Orientation and Emotion Recognition Abilities at 8 Years of Age and Teachers’ Ratings of Their Personal and Social Difficulties at 10 Years

“…The tendency to view outcomes as externally rather than internally determined has been found to be related to a variety of negative child outcomes. As compared to internality, childhood externality has been related to a greater likelihood of being sexually abused (Beach & Ford, 2006), depressed (Benassi, Sweeney, & Dufour, 1988;Luthar, & Blatt, 1993), anxious (Li & Chung, 2009), bullied (Kokknos & Panayiotou, 2007), enuretic (Butler, 2001), as well as having psychotic symptoms (Thompson, Sullivan, Lewis et al, 2011), learning disabilities (Dueley-Marling, Snider, & Traver, 1982), attention deficit disorders (Ialongo, Horn, Pascoe et al, 1993), suicidal behavior (Liu, Tein, Zhao, & Sandler, 2005), a lack of persistence (McLeod, 1985), and adjustment difficulties in adulthood (Gale, Batty, & Deary, 2008).…”