Hopelessness and Locus of Control

Abstract

Prociuk, Breen, and Lussier ( 5 ) examined the relationship between hopelessness and locus of control using a 20-item inventory entitled the Hopelessness Sca!e ( 1 ) They reported significant correlations of .40 and .27 for two samples of undergraduates. Male and female subjects were combined for purposes of their analysis. This study examined the relationship between hopelessness and locus of control wirh separate analyses reported for male and female subjects. Subjects were 7 3 undergraduates ( 4 3 females, 30 males) ranging in age from 18 to 26 yr. with M of 21.9 yr. Pearson product-moment correlations between scores on the hopelessness scale and Rottet's I-E Scale (Rortet, 1966) were .14 for females and .35 ( p < .05) for males. These correlations suggest that the relationship between hopelessness and a belief that behavioral outcomes are determined by luck, chance, or fate exists only for male subjects. This is consistent with previous studies that have examined the relationship between locus of control and depression. An examination of four studies involving six male and three female s3mples indicates significant correlations between locus of control and depression for all of the male samples and only one of three female samples (2, 3, 4, 7 ) . In light of these findings, attempts to examine the relationship between hopelessness and locus of control should report the relationship separately by sex. There is no apparent reason why either depression or hopelessness should relate to locus of control more strongly for males than females. Future research should determine the reasons for such a differential relationship.

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