"Examining Locus of Control and Attributional Style as Contributing Fac" by Marion Tam'eca Wallace

Date of Award

Summer 2010

Degree Type

Masters Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Psychology

Committee Chair

Christopher Barry

Committee Chair Department

Psychology

Committee Member 2

Bradley Green

Committee Member 2 Department

Psychology

Committee Member 3

Virgil Zeigler-Hill

Committee Member 3 Department

Psychology

Abstract

Previous research has shown a consistent relation between narcissism and aggression in adults (Bushman & Baumeister, 1998; Stucke, 2003). Although relatively few studies have examined this relation in adolescents, narcissism has previously been correlated with behavioral problems (Washburn, McMahon, King, Reinecke, & Silver, 2004) and aggression (Barry, Grafeman, Adler, & Pickard, 2007; Thomaes, Bushman, Stegge, & Olthof, 2008) in youth. The current study examined attributional style (i.e., intemality vs. extemality) and locus of control as contributing variables in the narcissism-aggression relation in adolescents. The current study consisted of 148 male and 26 female at-risk adolescents (M = 16.04 years, SD= .88). Narcissism was not related to overall aggression in the current study. However, narcissism was significantly correlated with self-esteem and proactive aggression. Contrary to expectations, locus of control did not moderate the narcissism-aggression relation, and a self-aggrandizing attributional style did not mediate the narcissism-proactive aggression relation. However, LOC was a moderator in the relation between self-esteem and aggression such that low self-esteem was associated with higher aggression for individuals with an external LOC. The implications of this study for understanding how self-perception is related to adolescent aggression are discussed below.

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Psychology Commons

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