Prediction of Locus of Control Stance From the Earliest Childhood Memory

Abstract

The study was designed to test whether data from the earliest childhood memory (EM) could predict a Rotter internal vs external locus of control stance. Main Study subjects were 215 undergraduates from introductory psychology classes. Those EMs which could be reliably scored and coded for control stance--153 of the 215 Main Study protocols--were examined for success at predicting Rotter control stance. A total of 127 of 153 control predictions were correct, which yielded a Chi Square of 67.51, p < .0005 for a 2 x 2 table. Further, all 5 EM content hypotheses, which were based on groupings of the 54 Pilot Study codes, yielded results significant at p < .05. These results were discussed as supporting the validity of EMs to predict control stance and as contributing to an understanding of the dynamic basis for and maintenance of a belief in internal vs external control.

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