HEALTH locus of control beliefs, conceptualised in terms of multidimensional health locus of control, were assessed in a group of 60 health promotion officers working in the North Western Region Health Authority. Measures of internal, powerful others and chance health locus of control beliefs were obtained and comparisons made with UK norms. Significant differences in the health belief dimensions were found and it is suggested that these differences may be important for preventive health strategies adopted by those professionals involved in health promotion activities.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Ajzen I. and Fishbein M.Understanding attitudes and predicting social behaviourEnglewood Cliffs, NJPrentice Hall, 1980
2.
Rotter JBSocial learning and clinical psychologyEnglewood Cliffs, NJPrentice-Hall. 1954
3.
Rotter JBGeneralized expectancies for internal versus external control of reinforcementPsychological Monographs, 1966, 80, 609
4.
Rotter JB Some problems and misconceptions related to the construct of internal versus external control of reinforcementJournal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 1975, 43, 56-67
5.
Stnckland BRInternal-external expectancies and health related behavioursJournal of Health and Social Behaviour, 1978, 13, 383-392
6.
Lefcourt HMLocus of control current trends in theory and research, 2nd Edition, New Jersey, Lawrence Erlbaum, 1982
7.
Bandura A.Self-efficacy mechanisms in human agencyAmerican Psychologist , 1982, 37, 122-147
8.
Peterson C., and Stunkard AJPersonal control and health promotionSocial science and Medicine , 1989, 28, 819-828
9.
Wallston KA, Wallston BS, Kaplan GD and Maides SADevelopment and validation of the health locus of control (HLC) scaleJournal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 1976, 44, 580-585
10.
Wallston KS and Wallston BS and DeVellis RF, Locus of control and health a review of the literatureHealth Education Monographs, 1978 , 6, 107-117
11.
Wallston KA and Wallston BSHealth locus of control scales In Research with the Locus of Control Construct, Vol 1 H M Lefcourt, (ED), New York, Academic Press, 1981
12.
Winefield HR Reliability and validity of the health locus of control scaleJournal of Personality Assessment, 1982, 46, 614-619
13.
Wurtele SKBntcher JC and Saslawsky DA Locus of control, health value, and preventive health behaviours among womenJournal of Research in Personality , 1985, 19, 271-278
14.
Norman P.Health locus of control beliefs and preventive health behavioursJournal of the Institute of Health education1990, 28, 113-117
15.
Knstiansen CMValue correlates of preventive health behaviourJournal of Personality and Social Psychology, 1985, 49, 748-758
16.
Eachus P.Health locus of control in student physiotherapists. Journal of theChartered Society of Physiotherapists, 1990, 76, 366-370
17.
Eachus, P.Multidimensional health locus of control in nursesJournal of Advanced Nursing, 1991. (In press)
18.
Foon, AEThe effects of social class and cognitive onentation on clinical expectationsBntish Journal of Medical Psychology, 1985 , 58, 357-364
19.
Mateau TMHealth beliefs and attributions In Health psychology processes and applications . Broome, A (ed ) London , Chap-man and hall, 1989
20.
Niven N.Health psychology an introduction for nurses and other health care professionals , Churchill Livingstone, 1989
21.
Wallstone, KALocus of control and health. Paper presented at the International Conference on Health Psychology , Cardiff, 1989
22.
Ferguson GAStatistical analysis in psychology and education, 5th edition McGraw-Hill, 1981
23.
Lumpkin JRThe relationship between locus of control and age new evidenceJournal of Social Behaviour and Personality, 1986, 1,245-252
24.
Speake DLCowart ME and Pellet K Health perceptions and lifestyles of the elderlyResearch in Nursing and Health, 1989, 12, 93-100
25.
Glidewell JC Afterword prevention - the threat and the promise In Felner RD Jason AJ Mortisugu JN andFarber SS (eds) Preventative Psychology, New York, Pergamon1983
26.
Antaki C. and Brewin C.Attnbutions and psychological change a guide to the use of attribution theory in the clinic and the classroom. London, Academic Press, 1982
