Locus of Control Test

Understand how someone views control over life outcomes in about 6 minutes. Get a detailed, reliable profile to guide coaching, counseling, hiring, and development.

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Questions: 406 minutes

08:30

October 2, 2025

October 2, 2025
Material has been updated

October 2, 2025
Material has been published

21,781 view

1,909 completions

1,648 likes

Verified by Daniel Hall

Psychologist with 25 years of experience

Scale Explorer

How the Scales are Structured

example score

3/8

Planning Readiness (PR)

Measures readiness to independently plan and carry out activities while taking responsibility for outcomes.

Low readiness

Moderate readiness

High readiness

0 – 3: Low readiness | 4: Moderate readiness | 5 – 8: High readiness

A score of 3 suggests lower readiness for independent planning and a tendency to rely more on external structure or guidance when organizing and owning tasks.

example score

3/8

Readiness to Overcome Difficulties (RtOD)

Measures how ready a person feels to engage in activities that involve overcoming obstacles and challenges.

Lower readiness

Moderate readiness

High readiness

0 – 3: Lower readiness | 4 – 5: Moderate readiness | 6 – 8: High readiness

A score of 3 suggests lower readiness to take on or persist through difficult tasks compared with higher scores on this scale.

example score

7/16

Denial of Agency (DoA)

Measures the extent to which a person views their actions as ineffective, reflecting externality versus readiness for active self-directed influence.

Low denial (more internal)

Borderline

High denial (more external)

0 – 8: Low denial (more internal) | 9: Borderline | 10 – 16: High denial (more external)

A score of 7 falls in the low-denial range, suggesting a more internal orientation and greater readiness to see personal actions as meaningful.

example score

3/8

Internality in the Health Domain (IitHD)

Measures the extent to which a person attributes health outcomes and health-related behaviors to their own actions versus external factors.

More external

Mixed

More internal

0 – 3: More external | 4 – 5: Mixed | 6 – 8: More internal

A score of 3 falls in the “More external” range, suggesting health outcomes may be perceived as influenced more by circumstances than by personal control.

example score

3/8

Internality in Family Relationships (IiFR)

Measures the extent to which a person attributes outcomes in family and marital relationships to their own actions versus external circumstances.

More external

Mixed

More internal

0 – 3: More external | 4: Mixed | 5 – 8: More internal

A score of 3 falls in the “More external” range, suggesting the person more often sees family-related outcomes as shaped by circumstances or other people rather than their own influence.

example score

4/8

Responsibility in Interpersonal Relationships (RiIR)

Measures the extent to which a person feels personally responsible for outcomes in interpersonal (international-relations) interactions.

Lower responsibility

Moderate responsibility

Higher responsibility

0 – 3: Lower responsibility | 4: Moderate responsibility | 5 – 8: Higher responsibility

A score of 4 suggests a moderate tendency to take responsibility in interpersonal relationships, balancing personal accountability with consideration of external factors.

example score

4/8

Interpersonal Competence (IC)

Assesses how competent a person perceives themselves to be in managing and building interpersonal relationships.

Lower perceived competence

Moderate perceived competence

Higher perceived competence

0 – 3: Lower perceived competence | 4: Moderate perceived competence | 5 – 8: Higher perceived competence

A score of 4 suggests a moderate level of perceived competence in interpersonal relationships, indicating a balanced view of one’s interpersonal skills.

example score

10/16

Internality in Interpersonal Relations (IiIR)

Measures how much a person sees themselves as actively shaping and maintaining their interpersonal relationships.

Low internality

Moderate internality

High internality

0 – 8: Low internality | 9: Moderate internality | 10 – 16: High internality

A score of 10 suggests a higher tendency to view the quality and direction of communication as influenced by your own actions rather than mainly by others or circumstances.

example score

4/8

Professional Process Skills (PPS)

Measures how developed the practical skills are for sustaining the day-to-day process of professional activity.

Skill gaps

Developing skills

Well-developed skills

0 – 3: Skill gaps | 4: Developing skills | 5 – 8: Well-developed skills

A score of 4 indicates developing skills, suggesting professional tasks are generally manageable but may require extra effort or support in some process-related areas.

example score

4/8

Occupational-Social Aspect (OSA)

Measures the tendency to take initiative and assume responsibility in professional and social interactions at work with supervisors and colleagues.

Lower initiative

Moderate initiative

Higher initiative

0 – 4: Lower initiative | 5: Moderate initiative | 6 – 8: Higher initiative

A score of 4 falls in the Lower initiative range, suggesting a comparatively lower tendency to take the lead and assume responsibility in workplace social interactions.

example score

8/16

Internality in Professional Activity (IiPA)

Measures how strongly a person tends to take personal responsibility for outcomes in professional or academic goal-directed activities.

Lower internality

Higher internality

0 – 8: Lower internality | 9 – 16: Higher internality

A score of 8 indicates a lower tendency to attribute work or study outcomes to one’s own actions, with responsibility for results more often perceived as unclear or externally influenced.

example score

-3/8

Self-Blame Proneness (SBP)

Measures the tendency to blame oneself for failures and attribute successes to external circumstances versus the opposite attribution pattern.

Lower self-blame

Optimal balance

Higher self-blame

-8 – -1: Lower self-blame | 0: Optimal balance | 1 – 8: Higher self-blame

A score of -3 falls in the Lower self-blame range, suggesting you are more likely to see successes as stemming from your own actions and failures as influenced by external circumstances.

example score

4/8

Internality in the Domain of Failures (IitDoF)

Measures the extent to which a person attributes failures to their own actions versus external circumstances.

More external attribution

More internal responsibility

0 – 4: More external attribution | 5 – 8: More internal responsibility

A score of 4 suggests a tendency to lean toward external explanations for failures rather than taking personal responsibility.

example score

4/8

Internality in the Achievement Domain (IitAD)

Measures the extent to which a person attributes achievements and success to their own actions and effort versus external circumstances.

Low internality

Moderate internality

High internality

0 – 4: Low internality | 5: Moderate internality | 6 – 8: High internality

A score of 4 indicates low internality in achievement, suggesting success is more often seen as shaped by external factors than by personal effort.

example score

5/20

Internality in Describing Personal Experience (IiDPE)

Measures the extent to which a person attributes their personal experiences and emotional states to their own actions and choices rather than external circumstances.

Low internality

High internality

0 – 10: Low internality | 11 – 20: High internality

A score of 5 indicates low internality in describing personal experience, meaning personal experiences are more often explained by external factors than by one’s own actions.

example score

8/20

Internality in General Life Description (IiGLD)

Measures the extent to which a person tends to view their overall life outcomes as primarily shaped by their own actions versus external circumstances.

More external

More internal

0 – 10: More external | 11 – 20: More internal

A score of 8 falls in the “More external” range, suggesting you more often explain life events in general through circumstances, chance, or other people rather than your own influence.

example score

9/40

Internality–Externality (IE)

Measures whether a person tends to attribute life outcomes to their own actions and responsibility (internality) versus external forces and circumstances (externality).

Externality

Internality

0 – 20: Externality | 21 – 40: Internality

A score of 9 falls in the Externality range, suggesting a stronger tendency to view outcomes as shaped by outside factors rather than personal control.

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DATA-BASED USER COHORTS

Who Usually Takes This Test?

Self-development seekers

41%OF USERS

People who want to understand whether they take responsibility for outcomes or blame circumstances, so they can change habits and build confidence.

Coaching and therapy clients

34%OF USERS

Clients in counseling or coaching who need a clear profile of how they explain successes and failures to set realistic goals and track progress.

HR and team leaders

25%OF USERS

Managers and HR specialists assessing initiative, accountability, and risk readiness to support hiring, onboarding, or team development decisions.

BASED ON AGGREGATED, ANONYMIZED DATA FROM TENS OF THOUSANDS OF FREUDLY USERS.

Benchmarking

See How You Compare

Once you complete the test, your results are compared with real-world data from people in your country.
Below is a preview of how scores are typically distributed across each scale.

Readiness for Planning (RfP)

Average

4.7

Normal range

3.4 — 6.1

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Readiness to Overcome Difficulties (RtOD)

Average

4.7

Normal range

3.4 — 6

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Denial of activity (Doa)

Average

9.1

Normal range

6.1 — 12.1

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Internality in the Health Domain (IitHD)

Average

3.6

Normal range

2.2 — 5

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Internality in the Realm of Family Relationships (IitRoFR)

Average

2.3

Normal range

0.9 — 3.7

min.

max.

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Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Responsibility in the field of international relations (Ritfoir)

Average

2.5

Normal range

1.4 — 3.6

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Competence in the field of interpersonal relationships (Citfoir)

Average

Normal range

1.6 — 4.3

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Internality in the Sphere of Interpersonal Relationships (IitSoIR)

Average

7.7

Normal range

4.8 — 10.6

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Professional-Process Aspect (PA)

Average

3.9

Normal range

2.8 — 5

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Professional and social aspect (Pasa)

Average

Normal range

3.8 — 6.2

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Internality in Professional Activity (IiPA)

Average

10.8

Normal range

8.7 — 12.8

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Predisposition to self-blame (Pts)

Average

3.4

Normal range

0.5 — 6.2

min.

-8

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Internality in the Domain of Failures (IitDoF)

Average

4.9

Normal range

3.6 — 6.2

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Internality in the Domain of Achievement (IitDoA)

Average

5.8

Normal range

4.5 — 7

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Internality in Describing Personal Experience (IiDPE)

Average

11.6

Normal range

8.7 — 14.5

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Internality in Describing Life in General (IiDLiG)

Average

13.6

Normal range

10.4 — 16.8

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

Externality – Internality (E–I)

Average

12.2

Normal range

6 — 18.4

min.

max.

This curve shows how scores are typically distributed.
Once you complete the test, your result will appear on the scale so you can see how you compare.

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SAMPLE QUESTIONS

Example Questions From the Test

You will be presented with statements about life. You may agree or disagree with each statement. If you think, “Yes, I feel about the same,” select “Yes.” If you think, “No, I feel differently,” select “No.”

- Yes
- No
- Yes
- No
- Yes
- No

These are 3 of the 40 real questions — the rest appear in the test. No sign-up needed to start.

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WHAT THE TEST MEASURES

About This Assessment

Locus of Control Test - Symptoms and Signs

locus of control

This measure is used to evaluate how an individual perceives control over life events; Locus of Control focuses on the degree to which outcomes are attributed to personal actions versus external circumstances. It is commonly applied in clinical and counseling settings to inform case conceptualization and goal setting.

The instrument consists of 40 items and typically requires about 6 minutes to complete. Item responses are scored to yield an index reflecting internal versus external control orientation, which may help contextualize coping style, perceived responsibility, and responses to success and setbacks.

In practice, Locus of Control can support screening and treatment planning by clarifying attributional patterns that may be relevant to motivation, engagement, and adjustment. Authors: J. B. Rotter.

Author: J. B. Rotter

Literature: Rotter, J. B. Generalized expectancies for internal versus external control of reinforcement. Psychological Monographs. 1966.