Locus of Control/控制点理论——我命由我或由天？两个极端均有弊端

KEY POINTS

People with an external locus of control believe that forces outside them are responsible for the events in their life.

具有外部控制点的人认为他们人生中的事件是由外部力量控制的。

Those with an internal locus of control believe that their personal decisions and efforts guide much of their lives.

具有内部控制点的人认为他们的人生在很大程度上是由他们的个人决策和努力引导的。

Wherever you fall on the spectrum, you may benefit from understanding your own orientation and how it may shape your behavior.

无论在这一谱段上你处于什么位置，了解个人控制点倾向以及它对你的行为的影响方式，都可能会让你受益。

My daughter had just pulled the caramel corn out of the oven, and the sticky-sweet smell was almost irresistible. Despite knowing it wasn’t going to help my diet, I was gnawing for a taste. But instead of kindly asking for a small bite, as I should have, I barked, “Damn this caramel corn!”

我女儿刚从烤箱里拿出焦糖爆米花，粘粘的香甜气味几乎令人无法抗拒。尽管知道这对我的节食计划无益，我依旧忍不住一尝美味。这种情况我本应礼貌地询问是否可以吃一小口，但我并没这么做，而是大叫到：“该死的焦糖爆米花！”

Cursing my daughter’s hard work earned me a scowl, and, if I’m honest with myself, didn’t set a good example for how a grown-up should handle himself. It wasn’t my daughter’s responsibility to manage what I put in my mouth, and it certainly wasn’t the caramel corn’s. Still, I blamed the caramel corn for tempting me, instead of taking responsibility for my urges.

这一对我女儿辛苦劳动成果的咒骂引来了她对我的皱眉。而且，老师说，在成年人如何控制自我行为方面，我也并没有给女儿树立一个好的榜样。监管我把什么东西放进嘴里，这并非我女儿的责任，也肯定不是焦糖爆米花的责任。但我却指责是爆米花引诱了我，而非为自己的冲动负责。

Your reaction to life events—specifically how you explain them—significantly affects your life outcomes.

你对人生事件的反应，具体来说你如何解释它们，对你的人生结果产生着重大影响。

Of course, there’s a continuum—nobody thinks their life is 100 percent under their control. But our orientation toward what we believe influences our life has a profound impact on us.

当然，这是一个连续谱段，没有人认为自己的人生100%在自己控制之中。但我们的这种认知倾向却对我们具有深刻影响。

Psychologists refer to this concept as a “locus of control,” a term psychologist Julian Rotter coined in the 1960s.

心理学家将这一概念称为“控制点”，这一名称由 Julian Rotter于上世纪60年代提出。

People with an external locus of control believe that forces outside them—fate, luck, circumstances, caramel corn—are responsible for the events of their lives.

具有外部控制点的人认为外界因素，比如命运、运气、境遇、焦糖爆米花等，对他们的人生事件负责。

In contrast, those who perceive an internal locus of control believe that their personal decisions and efforts guide much of their lives.

而与之相对，具有内部控制点的人认为他们的人生在很大程度上是由他们的个人决策和努力引导的。

Interestingly, you could have an external locus of control about one area of your life but an internal locus of control about another: You may believe your health is completely genetic, uninfluenced by your choices, but think the success of your career is a direct result of your hard work.

有趣的是，你可能会在人生某个领域具有外部控制点，而在另一领域具有内部控制点。你可能认为你的健康是完全由基因决定的，并不受你的个人选择的影响，但同时也认为你的事业成功是你个人努力的结果。

How does your locus of control affect your behavior?
你的控制点类型对你的行为有何影响？

If you think finding a partner is up to fate, you may not feel the need to actively seek, meet, and get to know new people. But if you think you have control over it, you may try harder to put yourself out there. In professional contexts, if you think a promotion is largely outside of your control, you won’t be driven to pursue it. If you see it as a result of your efforts, you’re more likely to endeavor to deliver good work.

如果你认为是否能够找到伴侣完全取决于命运，那么可能你就觉得自己不需要主动去寻找、邂逅和了解新的朋友。但如果你觉得这在自己控制范围内，你可能就会更努力地去主动寻找。在职业场合中，如果你觉得晋升在很大程度上不受自己控制，那么可能你就不会有争取晋升的驱动力。如果你认为它由你的个人努力而决定，那么你就更可能会努力做出更好的工作成果。

Countless studies have demonstrated the importance of locus of control in determining numerous life outcomes.

不计其数的研究都展示了控制点在决定众多人生结果方面的重要性。

For example, the perception that 10-year-olds have of their own agency has been shown to significantly predict their health outcomes in their thirties, including obesity, overall health, and psychological distress; those with a more internal locus of control in childhood have a reduced risk of poor health later on. Internal locus of control is also associated with psychological well-being, academic, and professional success.

例如，一个十岁小孩对个人主观能动性的观点已经被显示会在很大程度上预测他们在30岁时候的健康结果，其中包括过度肥胖、整体健康和心理痛苦感等。在童年时期更偏向于内部控制点的人在人生后期健康风险相对较低。内部控制点同时还与心理健康幸福、学业成就以及职业成就相关。

However, there is no “correct” locus of control, even though studies generally suggest that having an internal locus of control is advantageous. Both extremes can present disadvantages.

但是，并没有“正确”的控制点。尽管研究通常认为内部控制点要更有益。两种极端都会带来不利。

Wherever you fall on the spectrum, you may benefit from understanding your own orientation and how it may shape your behavior.

无论在这一谱段上你处于什么位置，了解个人控制点倾向以及它对你的行为的影响方式，都可能会让你受益。

Discover your locus of control
发现自己的控制点

Rotter’s full Locus of Control Scale is a 29-item questionnaire (PDF). But to get a quick sense of where you fall on the spectrum, consider which group of statements below resonates more with you.
Rotter的《控制点量表》是一份包含29个问题的问卷

（https://arc.psych.wisc.edu/self-report/locus-of-control-scale-lcs/）。

但想要快速了解你在这一谱段上的位置，思考下面哪组陈述更引起你的共鸣。

Internal locus of control:
内部控制点：

In my case, getting what I want has little or nothing to do with luck.

It is impossible for me to believe that chance or luck plays an important role in my life.

People are lonely because they don’t try to be friendly.

In the long run, people get the respect they deserve in this world.

There is a direct connection between how hard I study and the grades I get.

对我而言，心愿的实现与运气无关或几乎无关。

几乎不可能让我相信偶然因素或运气在我的人生中扮演着重要角色。

人们之所以孤独，是因为他们不愿展现出友好态度。

长远来看，人们终究会得到他们在这个世界所值得拥有的尊重。

我的学习努力程度与成绩成正比。

External locus of control:
外部控制点：

Many times we might just as well decide what to do by flipping a coin.

Many times I feel that I have little influence over the things that happen to me.

There’s not much use in trying too hard to please people; if they like you, they like you.

Unfortunately, an individual’s worth often passes unrecognized, no matter how hard they try.

Sometimes I can’t understand how teachers arrive at the grades they give.

很多时候，通过掷硬币来做决定也无妨；

很多时候我感觉我对发生在我身上的事几乎无影响力。

过于努力地去取悦他人，并没有多大用处。如果他们喜欢你，他们就会喜欢你。

很不幸，一个人的价值通常会不被认可，不管他们多么努力。

有时我想不通老师们怎么给我这样的分数。

Understanding the strengths and weaknesses of your locus of control
了解个人控制点类型的优势和劣势

Psychologists generally agree that, although our locus of control is largely established through experiences of reward and punishment when we are children, it is a flexible construct that can change throughout our life. However, not much research has been done on targeted interventions to change one's locus of control. Even so, we can notice how our locus of control may affect our life, and we can strive to reduce any negative effects it may have.

心理学家普遍认同：尽管我们的控制点很大程度上通过我们在童年时期时的奖励惩罚经历而形成，但它并非一成不变，可能会在人生过程中发生变化。但在“通过定向干预改变个人控制点类型”方面，尚无很多研究。即使如此，我们依旧可以识别我们的控制点对人生可能产生的影响，而且我们可以努力降低其可能产生的负面影响。

If you have an external locus of control
如果你具有外部控制点：

Good news: If you have a more external orientation, you may be both more willing to let things go and better at sharing work with others. On the other hand, you may feel less motivated to put time and effort into tasks since they feel beyond your control.

好消息：如果你倾向于外部控制点，那么你可能更愿意对事物释怀，而且更擅于与他人合作完成工作。但另一方面，你可能不大会主动付出时间精力去完成任务，因为你觉得它们并不受你的控制。

Here are a few strategies to make sure your locus of control doesn’t get in your way:
以下是一些确保你的控制点不会阻碍你发展的一些策略：

01

Practice accountability
为自己行为负责：

When something happens——good or bad——step back and think through what part you played in it.Identify both the contributing external and internal forces.

当有事发生时，无论好坏，都退后一步，思考自己在其中扮演着怎样的角色。既找出外部影响因素，也找出内部（自身）影响因素。

02

Catch external-oriented thoughts and challenge them
捕捉倾向于外部控制点的思维，并质疑它们。

When you find yourself blaming something bad on external forces or crediting luck for your success, be mindful of the stories you’re telling yourself and reassess your own role in these outcomes.

当你发现自己将某件不好的事情归咎于外部因素，或者将自身成功归因于运气时，注意审视你告诉自己的这些故事，并重新评估你在这些结果中所扮演的角色。

03

Avoid black-and-white thinking
避免非黑即白思维。

You hardly ever have zero control over what happens. Open your mind to the gray areas in every situation.

几乎不可能对所发生的事情毫无控制能力。在每种情形中，都打开自己的思维，将思维扩展至灰色地带。

04

Write it out
写下来

Writing can be a great way to see your thoughts a little more objectively. If you can do a brain dump on paper, you can get a clearer picture of how you think about a situation, which can help in practicing all of the above strategies.

写作，非常有益于让你更加客观地看待自己地思维。如果你可以记录下自己的思维，那么就可以更清晰看待你对某一情形的视角，这有助于帮助你实践上面的所有策略。

05

Change your mindset
改变自己思维：

While locus of control interventions haven’t been well studied, mindset interventions have, and there is a lot of overlap between the two. Learn about and cultivate a growth mindset to improve self-agency, motivation, and resilience.

尽管关于控制点的干预活动，这方面尚未得到充分研究，但思维干预却已被充分研究，而且二者之间有大量重叠之处。了解并培养成长型思维，以提升自身主观能动性、驱动力和韧性。

If you have an internal locus of control
如果你具有内部控制点：

Although an internal locus of control has many benefits—motivation, health, success—there are still some pitfalls to watch out for.

尽管内部控制点益处良多——驱动力、健康、成功——但依旧存在需要警惕的弊端：

Here’s how to avoid them:
以下是避免这些弊端的方法：

01

Delegate/放权：

Those who lean more internal on the locus of control spectrum may find it difficult to delegate since they are accustomed to feeling in control. Stretch yourself to share tasks with others rather than do every little thing yourself.

更倾向于内部控制点的人可能发现很难下放权力，因为他们习惯于感觉自己处于控制地位。逼自己将任务分配一些给他人，而非事无巨细一人承担。

02

Let it go/学会放手：

When you perceive life to be largely in your control, you may routinely find yourself stuck in self-blame. Take the time to reflect on the internal and external contributors to situations, and then move on. Ruminating about your role in something can be unproductive and discouraging.

当你觉得人生在很大程度上受你掌控时，你可能就会经常发现自己被困于自责之中。花时间思考促成某一情形的外部和个人因素，然后继续往前看。一直纠结于你在某件事中的角色会毫无益处，并挫人锐气。

03

“Control the controllables.” /“控制可控因素”

A mantra of many professional athletes, this phrase reminds us that we can control certain variables but not others. Strive to control what you can, but make peace with the uncontrollables and their inevitable impact.

这是很多职业运动员的格言。这句话提醒我们我们可以控制某些特定的变量，但无法控制其他某些变量。尽量控制自己能够控制的，但接受那些不可控因素以及它们不可避免所产生的影响。