Internal-external locus of control and children’s perceptions of their family environment

The relationship between locus of control orientation and children's perception of their Family environment was investigated by having 207 grade eight students C85 males and 121 females] complete the Family Environment Scale and the Nowicki-Strickland internal-external control scale. Children with high internal control saw their Families as being more cohesive, more expressive, encouraging more independence, having a higher level of achievement orientation, a greater interest in intellectual-cultural activities, a greater interest in active-recreational activities more interested in moral-religious issues and values, more organized, and experiencing less conflict and control in their Family relationships than the children with high external control. These Findings were consistent across sex with one exception; male children perceived a higher level of moral-religious emphasis in their Families than did Female children. A significant interaction between locus of control and subject gender was found for the subscale intellectual-cultural orientation. Internal males perceived a higher level of intellectual-cultural orientation in their Families than did external males, while internal and external Females perceived a similar level of intellectual-cultural orientation in their Families. These findings produced an interaction between locus of control and subject gender. The findings were discussed, summarized and suggestions for further research were presented.Education, Faculty ofEducational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education (ECPS), Department ofGraduat