The Effects of Working Conditions and Locus of Control on Performance

Phenomena like talent shortage, war for talents, and demographic change – Organizations are facing many challenges and changes these days. To compete in a contested market space the issue of employer attractiveness is becoming increasingly important. It seems that prioritizing the provision of attractive working conditions becomes prominent, while the importance of locus of control is underestimated. The research question addressed in this study is: What are the effects of working conditions and locus of control on performance? For this investigation, a quasi-experiment with a 2x2 factorial design was conducted. Participants were assigned to either an attractive or unattractive working condition while simultaneously experiencing internal or external locus of control. Subjects were asked to perform cognitive tasks and performance was measured by the total number of points reached. The results of the study did not yield statistical significance. However, it was observed that the group experiencing unattractive working conditions and internal locus of control had the highest performance. When also considering relevant research literature that highlights the psychological importance of control, it is suggested to conduct further research in this area of interest to gain a deeper understanding of the effects of control and their impact on various job outcomes like performance