Rotter's Locus of Control Scale: A Ten-Item Two-Factor Model

Abstract

The reported dimensionality of Rotter's Locus of Control Scale has ranged from 1 to 9 factors; however, most studies report a two-factor solution. Making an analysis across diverse populations, 10 items were identified as consistent across populations producing a two-factor model (personal and political control). A series of exploratory factor analyses ( N = 123), applying parallel analysis as the main extraction heuristic, indicated that the full 23-item and 10-item versions of Rotter's scale produced a two-factor model. When compared to the full 23-item version of the Rotter scale, the two factors of the 10-item version were shown to have no sex bias and the personal control scale showed a stronger association to feelings of being worn out than the full Rotter scale. In addition, political control and not personal control increased with age.