The Relationship Between Locus of Control, Gender and Field of Study Among Graduate Students at the University of Rhode Island

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of both field of study and gender on locus of control orientation among graduate students at the University of Rhode Island at Kingston. This study solicited participation from graduate students enrolled at the University of Rhode Island, spring semester, 1990 excluding those enrolled in the Graduate School of Oceanography, School of Business and in courses offered by the Director of the College of Continuing Education (CCE) Special Programs Division were excluded from the study. A total of 804 graduate students returned the two surveys which were used to gather data. Data on locus of control orientation was measured by the Reid-Ware Locus of Control Scale. Personal data concerning gender and field of study was gathered on a separate survey. Graduate students were divided into six academic disciplines based upon indicated field of study · (Math and Sciences, Human Sciences, Fine Arts, Business, Health, and Natural Resources). Graduate students were compared on total and three subscale scoresFatalism, Self Control, and Social Systems Controlof the locus of control construct. It was concluded that significant differences exist between genders only on the Self Control subscale; no significant differences were found on Fatalism, Social Systems Control or on the total score. Significant differences were not found on the locus of control construct between academic disciplines . Additional findings indicate that the older students were significantly different on the Social


INTRODUCTION
In 1987, a paper which reviewed all forms of research with a graduate student population was presented at the annual meeting of the Association for the Study of Higher Education. Citing wanmg interest in the graduate student population after . its peak enrollment in the mid-l 970s, the paper examined the paucity of research Although studies with this population have been diverse, they can be categorized as follows: matriculation; predicting success/ performance; gender differences, assistantships, standardized testing, career employment; minorities; stress and anxiety, attitudes toward research; impact of marriage and family; and attrition/retention. The majority of these studies focused on the categories of matriculation (including recruitment, admissions and student characteristics) and prediction of success. Cutting across these categories were sixteen studies dealing with the locus of control construct and its independent/dependent relationship with other variables.
The original research on the locus of control construct was completed by Julian Rotter in 1954. He defined locus of control as a continuum affecting a person's perception of behavioral reinforcement. 1 [The] effect of a reinforcement following some behavior on the part of a human subject, in other words, is not a simple stamping-in process but depends upon whether or not the person perceives a causal relationship between his own behavior and the reward.
When a reinforcement is perceived by the subject as following some action of his own but not being entirely contingent upon his action, then, in our culture, it is typically perceived as the result of luck, chance, fate as under the control of powerful others, . or as unpredictable because of the great complexity of the forces surrounding him--when the event is interpreted in this way by the individual, we have labeled this a belief in external control. If the person perceives that the event is contingent upon his own behavior or his own relatively permanent characteristics, we have termed this a belief in internal control. (Rotter, 1966) A person who believes that reinforcement is independent of his/her personal actions is on the external end of the continuum. If a person believes that rewards are contingent upon his/her personal actions, then he/she is on the internal side of the scale.
Research indicates that high achievement 1s related to internal locus of control among varying groups. Locus of control has been shown to differentiate between success and failure at lower levels of education .
Both Phares (1976) and Otter (1977) found that locus of control measures were a good predictor of degree attainment in graduate students . Although more longitudinal studies which could directly correlate locus of control and success in graduate school have not been conducted, other studies have demonstrated that more internally oriented persons value self-respect, wisdom, freedom, a sense of accomplishment and intellectualism more than those persons with an external orientation . In addition, locus of control has also been correlated with development of purpose, educational maturity, and career maturity in graduate students . This research will focus on the issue of the relationship between field of study, gender and locus of control.

Background of the Problem
As previously stated, research with the graduate population has suffered a decline despite the definite need for more information on both successful recruiting practices and factors attributing to matriculation.
Graduate education as an entity is perceived to be far behind the undergraduate in establishing a body of knowledge regarding admission characteristics and activities of students; methods of recruitment; utilization of available technology; centralization · of effort and funding; enrollment management and modeling (Turcotte, 1983, page 26).
Within the spectrum of graduate education, women traditionally have been underrepresented, but recently the number of women earning Master's degrees has almost equaled that of men (ASHE 1987). Within doctoral programs the number of women enrolled has increased, but unfortunately it is still far below the male total . Research dealing with gender in the graduate population has tended to focus on matriculation  and characteristics rather than specific values/ attributes that might be a factor in educational success/achievement or even the pursuit of a graduate degree.

Statement of the Problem
Although research dealing with the locus of control variable can be categorized as either single or multi-discipline, the majority of research dealing with graduate student populations has been limited to a single discipline . Relatively few studies have dealt with the variable across discipline areas (Doody, 1980;. Within the single discipline category, the studies focusing on differences in locus of control as related to gender have yielded varied results. A study of 731 graduate students attending the Virginia Commonwealth University during the 1983-86 academic years indicated that males were more internally oriented than females . Linder also reported the same findings in a smaller study ( 413 students) at the same university in 1985.
Conversely, a study at the University of Georgia found that 131 students varied on locus of control in relation to age and employment status but not as to race or gender .
Additionally, Doody (1980) found that race and field of study were more important determinants of internal-external orientation than gender among 264 interns in the Teacher Corps program from 39 states.
Further research is needed to examine differences across a greater range of disciplines and explore the differences in results involving the gender variable.

Purpose of the Study
The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between locus of control, gender and field of study among graduate students and to explore areas of ambiguity raised by earlier research.
The following questions acted as guidance: 1. What is the relationship between gender and locus of control?
2. What is the relationship between field of study and locus of control?
3. Is gender a greater factor related to locus of control than field of study?
4. If locus of control is divided into the three subscales (self-control, social systems control and fatalism), are .the differences between gender or field of study greater on any single scale?
5. Are there other factors related to locus of control?

Theoretical Assumptions
In order to conduct this research, a number of theoretical assumptions were made. First, that locus of control is a construct that can be measured reliably. It is not a dichotomy, but a conceptual continuum and individuals will place somewhere along the .. continum : n; either more external or internal depending upon their personal beliefs and stage of development. Second, that within a given culture, certain differences exist in the acculturation of male and females . Within each gender a certain degree of · homogeneity of development exists so that males and females can be studied separately. Third, that individuals within each field of study share common interests and that these persons can be grouped together for research purposes. In both the second and third assumption, it is relevant that college students, and therefore graduate students, are more homogeneous in . relevant ways than the culture from which they are drawn .

_ Research Hypotheses
The research hypotheses were: 1. Hypothesis 1: . There is a relationship between locus-ofcontrol orientation and field _ of study of graduate students.
2. Hypothesis 2: There is a relationship between gender and locus-of-control orientation of graduate students.
3. Hypothesis 3: Either gender or field of study will be a more dominant variable affecting locus-of-control; · both will not exert an equal effect.

IMPORTANCE OF THE STUDY
Studies have revealed that perceived personal control (internal orientation) can be · positively correlated to satisfaction with the graduate school experience . There is a possibility of maximizing achievement behavior by providing students with instruction and feedback that would encourage them to make internal attributions for success and lack of effort attributions for failure, thus enhancing their internal orientation . Therefore, the graduate ·school experience and students' subsequent performance would be enhanced by arranging environmental factors so that the student will view failure/success as contingent upon his/her own efforts, thereby increasing his/her internal orientation (Guterriez, 1982).  discussed the roles that all departments can play m developing a sense of purpose, personal identity, and professionalism in their graduate students. It is important that faculty be cognizant of inherent differences among the students under its purview in order to foster their professional development.
This commitment to student development is manifested in the application of information on student characteristics into one's teaching style and role . The results of this study delineate differences among graduate students at the University of Rhode Island; this information could increase the effectiveness of the faculty who teach and counsel these students. This study will be unique since it attempts to measure the relationship among the dimensions of field of study choice, gender and locus of control across a spectrum of more than thirty disciplines.
Prior research has focused on one or more disciplines in a limited -· sample, or one discipline across a number of college and university campuses. The largest range of · disciplines in locus of control research with graduate students was conducted at the University of Maine at Orono , but eliminated all engineering and science fields and any students under 22 or over 45 years of age. In addition, due to the large base of graduate students at the Un!versity of Rhode Island, the sample size (1692) available for this research was larger than the norm in other locus of · control studies.

DEFINITION OF TERMS
Locus of Control: A continuum affecting a person's perception of behavioral reinforcement within his/her own environment (Rotter, 1954).

Internals
(persons displaying an internal locus-of-control): Individuals who believe that reinforcements in their environment are achieved as a result of their own efforts.
Externals (persons displaying an external locus-of-control): Individuals who believe that reinforcements in their environment occur based upon luck, fate or the control of more powerful others.
Graduate Students: Students who have matriculated from an accredited university or college and are now seeking either a certificate of study, Master's or doctoral degree and are enrolled at the university either full-or part-time.

Foreign Students:
Students whose acculturation occurred m a foreign setting (other than U.S.), whether or not they have become naturalized citizens of the U.S.

Field of Study:
The chosen subject of a graduate student for their educational pursuit, either a certificate of study, Master's or doctoral degree.

REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE
The review of literature has been divided into four sections. In the first section, theories related to the construct of locus of control are discussed.
In the second section, the relevant literature dealing with achievement and success and the locus of control construct is summarized.
In the . third section, research on differences between individuals across fields of study is reviewed. In the fourth section, the research conducted on gender differences and their relationship to locus of control are summarized.

Locus of Control Construct
Social learning theory postulates that the majority of all behaviors are learned in a social setting. Both expectancy and reinforcement concerning the learned behaviors are contingent upon the cultural biases present in the environment, i.e. rewards are given for socially acceptable behaviors and punishment may be administered for behavior that is considered inappropriate. Thus expectancy, reinforcement and learning are interrelated.
The effects of behavioral reinforcement depend in varying extent on whether the individual perceives reinforcement as being contingent upon his or her own behavior, or independent of it.
Studies have shown that those individuals who possess a belief m personal control of reinforcements tend to be more perceptive of those environmental variables which may yield information relevant to their future behavior (Rotter 1954(Rotter , 1966.
Rotter proposed the construct of locus of control to describe the causal relationship between reinforcement and personal actions.
Individuals who felt that reinforcements in their environment were triggered by their personal actions were on one side (internal) of the construct continuum. These persons were more likely to value success and take action to improve their quality of life (cerebral or physical).
On the other side of the continuum (external), were the individuals who believed that reinforcements in the environment were not subject to their control. These individuals felt that fate, luck, chance or more powerful others could manipulate environmental rewards that they desired.
It is important to note that the idea of internal-external locus of control was modified by  so that the perception of causal relationships in the environment is only half of the construct.
Individuals must also be able to interpret these perceptions; using this interpretation as the guidance for future behaviors.
Research in the past two decades has explored the relationship between locus of control and other constructs or behaviors. Several studies have indicated that internals have a statistically significant advantage over externals with regard to information acquisition and assimilation and to attentive abilities (Phares, 1968;.
When comparing value acquisition and locus of control, it has been shown that more internally oriented individuals valued self-respect, wisdom, freedom, a sense of accomplishment and intellectualism.
Externally oriented persons valued family security, a comfortable life, and cheerfulness .
Most of this research has focused on the ability of internally oriented individuals to engage in more goal-directed activity than their external counterparts. Externally oriented persons spend more time in emotional or non-goal directed behaviors. Externals often fail to see that a relationship does exist between their actions and the reinforcement that follows or the lack thereof (MacDonald, 1973).
The majority of research on the locus of control construct has treated it as a one-dimensional concern. A minority of the research has suggested that the construct may actually be multi-dimensional Ware, 1973, 1974). In a research study with an undergraduate population,  postulated that two subscales were present, luck and belief in one's own innate abilities . Using Rotter's internal-external instrument, he factor analyzed the twenty three valid questions, having discarded the six buffer items , and found the two separate dimensions. Reid and Ware (1973) expanded on Mirels' research using a multiple regression model and identified and measured two independent dimensions of fatalism and social systems control. In a later study (1974), Reid and Ware factored out a third subscale, selfcontrol. Belief in self control differs from the other two factors, fatalism (belief in luck) and social systems control (belief in more powerful others), in the perception that personal action has a direct effect on environmental rewards.

Achievement and Success
Although much research has been conducted with regard to success in scholastic endeavors and locus of control , most of the studies have tended to focus on scholastic achievement in grades one through twelve (Baron and Ganz, 1972; or on the undergraduate level Lombardo and Fantasia, 1978;Phares, 1968;Weaver, 1976).  found that locus of control was a strong predictor of achievement with an undergraduate population. On the graduate level, a longitudinal study investigating the relationship between grade point average and degree attainment in males revealed a strong positive correlation between degree attainment and an internal locus of control. Locus of control was found to be a greater predictor of degree attainment than grade point average .
Internals (people who have an internal locus of control) have also been found to score higher on the flexibility and originality portions of the Unusual Uses subtest of the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking . While flexibility and originality could be vital in the creative thinking portion of problem solving, internals failed to perform significantly better on other portions of the test. In the research with juvenile prisoners in a reformatory , results revealed a substantial correlation occured between internal orientation and the amount of parole material recalled . Acquisition of information concerning immediate reformatory situation and long-range prospects did not demonstrate a correlation with the internal-external scale, indicative of differential retention; superior recall occurs only when the information is vital to attainment of personal goals.

Field of Study
Most research has focused on a single discipline area; there is a paucity of information regarding the relationship between field of study and locus of control. In the two studies located that directly discussed the issue of interdisciplinary differences, the results were different.
In the first study, results revealed that internally oriented individuals preferred the liberal arts and the more externally oriented had entered the fields of science and math (Doody, 1980).
In the second study, no significant school effects between dentistry, business or education were found . Further research in this area needs to be conducted to identify whether more definite correlations occur among fields of study.

Gender Differences
Research on college attrition has shown that aside from ability, gender is the most powerful factor in determining matriculation (Peterson and Sells, 1973). Despite the fact that gender does not differentiate significantly in either intelligence or academic ability, the educational attainment of women has been traditionally lower.
This difference in educational pursuit is also not attributable to significant differences in gender learning styles. Research has shown that while men are more avoidant and women more participatory (Zelazek,1986), these differences do not occur at the p< .05 level.
Safilios-Rothschild (1979) implied that high achieving women lack an internalized belief about their abilities. A woman, by externalizing the reinforcement, tends to take less responsibility for her success and thus reduces its value (Deaux and Emswiller, 1974;Frieze et al, 1978). There is some evidence that this external orientation is focused solely in women with a more traditional background, i.e., they saw their reinforcements revolving around family and societal opinions .
Research on the locus of control construct has revealed age and ethnic differences (Doody,1980;, but research concerning investigating the gender variable has had differing results.
In two separate studies conducted at the Virginia Commonwealth University, Linder investigated the correlation between gender and locus of control.
In a study of undergraduate and graduate students in a teacher education program: while not reaching statistical significance, the data suggested that males were more internally oriented than females (Linder, 1985, page 7).
In a later study by the same researcher (1987), the results with a population of 631 graduate students in the fields of dentistry, business and education, revealed that males were significantly more internally oriented than females across all three disciplines .
A study of 254 members of the Teacher Corps program showed that women were less internal than their male counterparts. Neel (1978) and Stansbury (1976) found no significant differences between males and females on locus of control with undergraduate subjects. The same results were also m evidence with a graduate population Khafaji and Talib, 1981). When the additional variable of race was investigated with locus of control and gender, it was determined that race was almost 20 times more powerful a determinant as gender. Non-Caucausian females were perceived to be the most externally oriented, and Caucasian males were the most internally (Doody, 1980).

Summary
Locus of control is not a construct that remains static throughout a person's lifetime. As a person ages, he or she accumulates experiences that affect his/her perceptions about reinforcements in the environment and it is these perceptual changes that cause fluctuations on the locus of control continuum. As age increases, individuals tend to become increasingly more internal .

Many locus of control studies have been conducted
investigating the relationship between this construct and other dependent variables. Studies have indicated that people with a more internal locus of control have a significant advantage over those who are more external in the acquisition of information, learning and achievement Phares, 1976;. Thus, locus of control could be an important factor in determining future success in academic endeavors and used when providing vocational counseling or as a entrance requirement factor for graduate school.

RESEARCH METHOD
This chapter contains the methodology of this study and includes a description of the research approach and design, the three null hypotheses and their components, the selection of subjects, data collection techniques and data analysis methods. In addition, the methodological assumptions and limitations have been placed in this chapter.

Research Approach
A survey approach was utilized in this study. No pilot study was conducted since the primary instrument (Reid-Ware Locus of Control) had been used successfully in other studies (Reid and Ware,197 4) and with graduate students . The study investigated the relationship between locus of control and the variables of gender and field of study among graduate students.
While the sample group already existed (graduate students at The University of Rhode Island), the data on locus of control were not currently available from any sources: therefore, two concurrent surveys were used to collect and link togethor the necessary information.

Research Design
This was intended as a post-test only design: no treatment was administered to any part of the sample. It was a correlational and cross-sectional multiple group study designed to determine what, if any, relationships existed between graduate students' locus of control, their gender and chosen field of study. Investigated was the degree to which variations occured between genders on the locus of control variable and between the six field of study categories on the locus of control. The results of these two correlations were then contrasted to determine which, if any, had a more profound effect on the locus of control variable.

Null Hypotheses
The following hypotheses, stated in the null form, will be examined during this study:

Ins tru men ta tion
Although the Rotter Scale is the most frequently used measure m internal-external locus of control research, its lack of sensitivity to specific behaviors and attitudes has been documented . Therefore, this study used the Reid-Ware When a respondent's total is calculated from all three subscales, the sum score ranges from zero (highly internal) to 43 (highly external).
The most important aspect of the R WS is that it differentiates the internal-external orientation of the respondent along three subscales: Self-Control, Social Systems Control and Fatalism.  in a study of female graduate students has shown that statistically significant differences may not occur in internal-external orientation on the Fatalism subscale but be apparent in both Selfcontrol and Social Systems Control subscales.
The test-retest reliability (after 6 weeks) of the RWS is reported as .62 for the Self-Control subscale, .71 for the Social Systems Control subscale, and .63 for the Fatalism subscale. The total score reliability was reported to be .71. The original population for the reliability studies was undergraduate college students and it has been used in research with · graduate students . Face and content validity was determined by a careful review of the RWS.
All 45 paired items concern the subject's perceptions/beliefs about the way he/she deals with his/her social and physical environment.
There are 13 buffer items in the RWS but they are difficult to distinguish from the items relating to each subscale.

Data Collection Procedure
This was a comparative study using a post-test only design; no treatment is being offered to any group. A direct miling was used to distribute the instruments. A cover letter (Appendix A) addressed the orientation of the research, the need for large scale participation and details for completion and return of the instruments. A personal data survey (Appendix B) and the Reid-Ware Locus-of-Control Scale (RWS) (Appendix C) were enclosures to the cover letter. Returns of the survey were accepted for use in the data base for two months after the initial mailing. All surveys received after that date were discarded.

Data Analysis Procedure
Surveys were returned by a provided, self-addressed stamped envelope. Surveys received in the mail were checked for removal of original mailing labels to preserve anonymity and residual names were removed/ blacked out. Participants who desired a copy of the abridged survey results also enclosed a 3" x 5" card with their name and address, and this was also removed from the survey package.
Each set of returned surveys was inspected to insure all appropriate items had been completed and all pages were intact. The personal data and belief surveys of each respondent were then stapled together.
The respondents to the surveys were categorized according to gender and field of study prior to scoring. The fields of study were grouped as follows to allow for a larger sample size within each set:

Methodological Assumptions
For the purpose of this study, the following assumptions were made: 1. The RWS is a valid instrument to measure locus of control.
2. The respondents will be a representative sample of the population of graduate students at the University of Rhode Island.
3. All respondents cooperated voluntarily and answered the questions honestly and to the best of their ability.
4. The respondents understood the directions, implications of the study and correctly completed the instruments.

Limitations of the Study
The following limitations of this study are acknowledged:    although certain fields were to be excluded from the sample m order to reduce the sample size, several were inadvertently included by the Graduate School as part of the mailing.

Distribution of Sample by Gender
The respondents were categorized by gender as shown m  Statistics available for all graduate students enrolled full-and part-time at the University of Rhode Island Fall 1989 are shown in Table 6. The age distribution within the sample population is roughly equal to that found in the total population.

Distribution of Sample by Degree Program
The sample collected (including foreign students) was heavily weighted with masters' degree candidates; only one-fifth of the graduate students were currently enrolled in a Ph .D. program (Table 7). Only 5% of the subjects who returned surveys were enrolled in a non-degree or certificate program. The data revealed that 69% of all the males who returned surveys were from masters' degree candidates, and 27% of males were Ph.D. candidates; 79% of females were in a masters' degree program and only 16% were enrolled in a doctoral program (typically Nursing or Psychology) (Table 8). Table 9 reflects the data on gender within the sample population in relation to composition of degree enrollments.
Females accounted for 69% of the total of masters' degree candidates but only 53% of the Ph .D. candidates who took part in the research, while men were 31 % of the Masters' candidates and 47% of the doctoral students who returned complete surveys.

Age and the Locus of Control Construct
As an individual ages, research has shown that their locus of control becomes increasingly more internal  Since the total score yielded no statistically significant results, all three subscale scores were subjected to an analysis of variance.
Two of the subscale scores, Fatalism and Self-Control, showed no differences between the groups. However, the Social Systems control subscale yielded an F-ratio of 3.912 and was statistically significant at the p<.05 level (Table 18). Table 19 presents the mean differences between groups and results of the Scheffe post-hoc multiple comparison analyses.
Significant differences were shown between the following groups: 20-25 and over 40, 26-30 and over 40, 31-35 and over 40, 36-40 and over 40. The differences between the groups could be  * not significant  attributable to the fact that the over 40 group was not divided into smaller age groups; much older students were part of this group and if students become increasingly internal the effect could have been to make this group significantly more internal than if it had been 40-45, 46-50, etc.

Foreign versus Indigenous Students on Locus of Control Variable
Previous research on the locus of control variable among graduate students has either ignored the variable of foreign acculturation  or deleted the data collected from foreign students entirely (Doody, 1980) . Since social learning theory emphasizes the importance of the environment m which the reinforcement is received, it is an intriguing question of whether differences in environment have an effect on the locus of control construct.
The means and standard deviation of foreign and indigenous graduate students are on the total score of the locus of control instrument presented in Table 20. The mean for foreign students is 13.903 and the mean for indigenous students is 11.923.
An F-ratio of 8.453 was calculated and is significant at the p<.05 level. Thus indigenous students are significantly more internal than foreign students. Since a significant difference was shown between foreign and indigenous students on the total score, the scores for the three subscales were subjected to an analysis if variance. Tables 21-23 show the means and standard deviations for the subscales of Social Systems Control, Fatalism and Self Control respectively. The mean for foreign students on the Social Systems Control subscore is 5.419  Table 22 shows the means and standard deviations on the Fatalism subscale. The mean for foreign students is 4.658 and the mean for indigenous students is 3.735. The F-ratio was calculated to be 6.024 and is significant at the p<.05 level. Thus, foreign students believe that luck, fate or providence plays a more powerful role in their life than indigenous students.
The means and standard deviations of the third subscale, Self-Control, are shown in Table 23. The mean for foreign students is 3.919 and the mean for indigenous students is 3.791. A F-ratio of .113 was calculated and failed to be significant at the p<.05 level; indicating that foreign and indigenous students do not vary in their belief in the ability to control their own actions.

Sample Population Related to Normative Sample
The results of a comparison of the scores of this sample to the subjects in an earlier study that used this instrument  and the normative sample (Reid and Ware, 1974) for the total score and all three subscales are shown in Table 24. It was found that this study's sample was significantly more internal than the normative sample (composed of undergraduate psychology students) but that it was less internal than the Stack sample composed of 164 female graduate students from 5 San Diego County universities and colleges. (2) to determine if field of study has an impact on the locus of control construct.
The principal findings of this study were: (1) No significant differences were shown to exist (at the p<.05 level) between genders on the total scale. On the Self-Control subscale, significant differences were shown between the genders.; on the Fatalism subscale, no significant difference was shown between the genders ; on the Social Systems Control subscale, no significant differences were shown to exist at the p<.05 level.
(2) Significant differences were not found on the locus of control construct between academic disciplines as delineated into the six field of study categories by this study .
Additional findings indicate that: ( 1) Although no differences were found between academic disciplines on the locus of control total score; significant differences were found between the individuals enrolled in the Math and Sciences and those enrolled in Health fields on the Social Systems Control subscale. No differences were found between any field of study categories on the Fatalism or Self-Control subscales .
(2) Differences were shown between the age categories on the locus of control construct. The older students ( over 40) scored significantly lower on the Social Systems Control subscale than younger students (all four other groups).
(3) Significant differences were found between foreign and indigenous students on the total score of the locus of control instrument and two of its three component subscales (Fatalism and Social Systems Control).

Discussion
Locus of control is a personality characteristic that identifies individuals on one end of the continuum (internal) as being more likely to succeed in information acquisition , cognitive processing  and therefore in the larger task of academic endeavors . Internals describe themselves as more active, striving, achieving, powerful, and effective (Hersch and Scheibe, 1967). In addition, research clearly identifies internals as superior in their efforts at coping with and gaining a measure of control over their environments (Phares, 1976) .
Although no significant differences between locus of control total scores and field of study were found in this study, this could be due to the chosen means of categorizing disciplines as Math and genders lay in one of the subscales and not in the total score (possibly accounting for the diverging results in various studies).
Significant differences were not shown between genders on the total score. However, males were significantly more internal than females on the Self-Control subscale and different, but again not significantly, on the Social Systems Control subscale.
The results of this study--that men are more internal on the Self-Control subscale, but not on the Fatalism, Social Systems Control or total scores; seems rooted in gender specific acculturation. The analysis of vanance conducted on this sample and the variables of age and locus of control, yield results similar to other studies that investigated the age variable . The greatest differences between the groups were between the oldest group (over 40 years of age) contrasted with all other groups. The over 40 group were significantly more internal than any other age group. Since success in academic endeavors has been shown to be positively correlated with internal locus of control  those persons who do not pursue a graduate degree because they may feel they are to old to reenter the academic environment may do better than they believe.

Conclusions
As a result of this study, the following conclusions were drawn: 1. There is no difference in locus of control orientation between any of the fields of study included in this study. Differences may occur between individuals or among and between other variables, but when the individual scores within each field of study are summed and a mean for each group calculated, the groups are almost homogenous. The significant difference found between the Math and Science category and the Health category could be attributable to the compositions of those groups; Math and Science is predominantly male and Health is predominantly female.
2. There is a tendency for female graduate students to be more external than male graduate students, particularly in the areas of self-control, where they are significantly different, and in the area of social system control. There is no difference between the genders in fatalism.
3. Foreign graduate students are significantly more external than indigenous students. There are significant · differences in the areas of fatalism and social systems control; foreign students feel they have less control over their political and social institutions and also believe more strongly in the effects of fate. No differences exist in this sample between the foreign and indigenous students on the issue of self-control.
4. In general, the older students perceive greater personal control over environment, self-achievement and fate.

Implications
Graduate school is a challenging and demanding environment which requires scholastic ambition, goal setting and achievement, and the ability to surmount obstacles in the environment. In order to matriculate, graduate students must have provided their own motivation and direction to complete all the stipulated tasks as required by their academic institution. Acquisition of a graduate degree is a significant accomplishment that occurs only after intensive preparation and execution. It is reasonable to assume that since considerable research shows that high achievement is related to internal locus of control Phares, 1976) , determining locus of control could also help to differentiate the probability of success in graduate school.
As previously stated, locus of control scores are not static for an individual; internal-external scores can be altered by a range of conditions, varying from very specific influences that are transitory and changes that have a more permanent effect (Phares, 1976).
Change is made possible by providing the proper selection of new experiences; to help someone become increasingly internal, he/she should be led to see how his/her actions directly lead to positive or negative reinforcements in their environment. Once these individuals perceive the importance of their actions in attaining their goals, and minimize the influence of luck, their ability to further succeed in academic endeavors will have been enhanced.
Additionally, improved internal locus of control will enhance copmg efforts and achievement behaviors (Phares, 1976 As part of the requirements for my Master of Arts degree, I am conducting a study of graduate students examining the relationship between field of study, gender and personal beliefs. Previous research has shown that personal beliefs greatly influence development of purpose and length of study within graduate school and that differences are greater between fields of study than between genders.
I am striving to bring the results of this study together quickly, and I encourage you to promptly complete these two short questionnaires so that your responses can be included in my data base. Your participation in this study is valuable in increasing the representative sample of graduate students across fields of study.
Enclosed is a self-addressed, stamped envelope for your convenience in returning the materials. Your responses will be anonymous and will be used for research purposes only.
If you would like a copy of the summary of results when the study is completed, please enclose your name and address on a 3" x 5" card.
Thank you very much in advance for your participation.

Mary Fetherston Graduate Student in Adult Education
University of Rhode Island

APPENDIX B
PERSONAL DATA SURVEY PERSONAL DATA: Please complete the following as completely as possible by circling the appropriate response or supplying another answer if you do not fit in the supplied categories. This data will be used for research purposes only.  PLEASE be sure you followed the instructions and circled ONLY ONE LETTER for EVERY item.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR COMPLETING TIDS SURVEY! (Reid and Ware,197 4)