ABILITY, LOCUS OF CONTROL, ACHIEVEMENT MOTIVATION, AND PERFORMANCE: A TEST OF A SEQUENTIAL HYPOTHESIS.
Item
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Title
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ABILITY, LOCUS OF CONTROL, ACHIEVEMENT MOTIVATION, AND PERFORMANCE: A TEST OF A SEQUENTIAL HYPOTHESIS.
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Identifier
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AAI8401924
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identifier
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8401924
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Creator
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COBB, LEE EDMOND.
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Contributor
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Samuel Messick
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Date
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1983
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Language
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English
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Publisher
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City University of New York.
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Subject
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Psychology, Social
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Abstract
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The main hypothesis of this investigation was that IQ (--->) IE (--->) Ac (--->) DV: some level of ability (IQ)--and the resultant self-perception of competency--is necessary for the formation of an internal locus of control (IE), and some level of this sense of control over one's life is necessary for the formation of achievement motivation (Ac)--the desire to attain goals, which, in turn, is antecedent to actual performance (DV). Ancillary hypotheses were that (a) this model would not hold for members of the lower socioeconomic class: apparently sufficient ability levels would not support adequate levels of internal locus of control, and (b) the often-cited superiority of males over females in achievement motivation and internal locus of control would not occur in a lower-class sample: both would be obliterated by the pervasive and depressive influences emanating from the lower-class environment.;White middle class and Black/Hispanic lower class samples were drawn from a college student population in the New York metropolitan area.;The main hypothesis was disconfirmed among middle class Whites, using both measures commonly quoted in the literature as well as purified measures with increased discriminant validity, mainly because the causal path model used to test this hypothesis was constrained by the low zero-order correlations among the variables.;The main hypothesis was also disconfirmed among lower class Blacks and Hispanics using measures quoted in the literature. The ancillary hypotheses could neither be confirmed nor disconfirmed because it proved impossible to define a stable and meaningful factor structure for lower class Blacks and Hispanics. It is demonstrated that the responses of this group were virtually content-free: their responses could be most readily explained by the operation of acquiescent responding with the implication of low interpretive skills, social desirability responding, defensive responding, and careless responding.
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Type
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dissertation
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Source
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PQT Legacy CUNY.xlsx
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degree
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Ph.D.
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Program
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Psychology
