Health versus activity in elderly persons' locus of control.

Abstract

Brothen and Detzner (1983) found as the elderly persons' health declined, the more external their locus of control. It may also be that as health declines, elderly persons become less active and more isolated. If elderly persons could not take part in community or social activities or were limited by transportation, it seems likely they would feel less in control. This siruation would be exacerbated by the reduction in the number of friends or relatives available to call upon (Cicirelli, 1980)a restriction in life space (Phillips h Sternhall, 1977). The purpose of this study was to determine whether reduction in activity was related to external locus of control. Further, could health be simply a mediating factor for activity in relation to locus of control? To test these ideas, a national probability sample of 601 elderly persons 65 yr. and older (mean age 72.5 yr., SD = 5.21) were queried via a self-administered mail questionnaire. A subsample of six items from Rotter's (1966) locus of control scale was used (a = .686, M = 2.55, SD = .577) with a five-point scale from disagree (1) to agree (5). A 10-item perceived (good) health scale (a = ,788, M = 3.43, SD = ,590) and a nine-item activity scale (a = .724, M = 3.04, SD = .642), also in Likert format, were used. The activity measure included items on community or social activity and reduction in activity because transportation was limited or fewer friends or relatives. As expected, perceived (good) health was negatively correlated with external locus of control (T = -.244, p < .01) and positively correlated with activity (T = .414, p < .01). As hypothesized, activity is negatively correlated with external locus of conuol (s = -.203, p < .01). Further, this relationship was still significant (r = -.113, p = .007) even when accounting for the effect of health, age, or sex differences. Even after partialing out he effect of health, those with less activity were more external in their locus of control. Activity seems to be as strong an influence on locus of control as health. If elderly persons are forced to reduce their activity (i.e., moved into institutions and away from their friends or relatives, or by outliving their friends, losing their transportation, insufficient income, etc.), they may become externally oriented even if they are in good health. Research should, then, account for age and level of activity as well as health when investigating locus of control.