Assessing the status of locus of control as an indicator of core self-evaluations

Association of personality with habituation of physical and non-physical activities among Japanese adults: Results from questionnaire research before COVID-19 pandemic

Background

Physical activity has benefits for public health as it reduces the risk of non-communicable diseases and improves the quality of life. Previous studies have shown that health conditions, lifestyle, and socioeconomic status influence one's tendency to engage in physical activity. However, the influence of psychological traits on engagement in physical activity is not yet fully understood. In this study, we explored personality traits associated with the habituation of physical activity and compared them with personality traits associated with the habituation of non-physical activity.

Methods

We recruited 1600 Japanese adult volunteers and conducted an online survey just before the spread of COVID-19. We collected data for the prevalence of physical and non-physical activities, and various aspects of personality traits including the Big Five personality traits, sensitivity to behavioral activation, dark triad personality, levels of internal locus of control, and the degree of just-world belief.

Findings

The results demonstrated that high levels of extraversion, sensitivity to behavioral activation, and an internal locus of control had a positive influence on the habituation of physical activity. Moreover, our results were contradictory as they also showed that high levels of openness, sensitivity to behavioral activation, and just world belief related to the habituation of non-physical activity.

Interpretation

These results suggest that the personality traits that influenced the habituation of activities depend on the characteristics of the activity and reveal extraversion and internal locus of control as the personality traits specific to the habituation of physical activity.

Fundings

This study was supported by Senryakuteki-kenkyu from Chukyo University, a Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists (Grant No. 19 K20650 and 22 K13880), the Promotion of Joint International Research (Grant No. 20KK0054). This work was also supported by a Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research on Innovative Areas "Construction of the Face-Body Studies in Transcultural Conditions" (Grant No. 17H06342).

Individual Variation in Responding to Leader–Member Exchange Differentiation: The Moderating Roles of Internal Locus of Control and Self-Efficacy

This study examines how differentiation in leader–member exchange relationships (LMXD) provokes different individual responses depending on personal dispositions—internal locus of control and self-efficacy. Further, we identify three types of individual behavioral responses to LMXD: in-role and extra-role performance as self-focused responses, impression management toward the leader as a leader-focused response, and social undermining of coworkers as a coworker-focused response. Analysis of data from a survey conducted in South Korea demonstrates cross-level interaction effects between LMXD and the two dispositional variables on these behavioral responses of individuals. Specifically, LMXD is more positively related to in-role and extra-role performance and impression management toward the leader for individuals high than low in internal locus of control and for individuals high than low in self-efficacy. However, the cross-level interaction effects are not supported regarding social undermining of coworkers. Theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed.

Psychometrical Properties of a French Version of the General Self-Efficacy Short Scale (ASKU)

Abstract. General self-efficacy is a central personality trait often evaluated in surveys as context variable. It can be interpreted as a personal coping resource reflecting individual belief in one’s overall competence to perform across a variety of situations. The German-language Allgemeine-Selbstwirksamkeit-Kurzskala (ASKU) is a reliable and valid instrument to assess this disposition in the German-speaking countries based on a three-item equation. This study develops a French version of the ASKU and tests this French version for measurement invariance compared to the original ASKU. A reliable and valid French instrument would make it easy to collect data in the French-speaking countries and allow comparisons between the French and German results. Data were collected on a sample of 1,716 adolescents. Confirmatory factor analysis resulted in a good fit for a single-factor model of the data (in total, French, and German version). Additionally, construct validity was assessed by elucidating intercorrelations between the ASKU and different factors that should theoretically be related to ASKU. Furthermore, we confirmed configural and metric as well as scalar invariance between the different language versions, meaning that all forms of statistical comparison between the developed French version and the original German version are allowed.

Eat to avoid negative self-awareness: Locus of control and core self-evaluation as serial mediators in the effect of stress on food intake

The primary hypothesis of escape theory lies in that those who are under stress eat to escape from negative self-awareness. Although escape theory has been well cited in the eating literature, relatively few studies have directly tested its applicability to stress-induced eating. The aim of the present study is to provide causal evidence on using escape theory to explain the effect of stress on food intake. Specifically, we examined whether locus of control (LOC) and core self-evaluation (CSE) are serial mediators in the effect of stress on food intake. By a longitudinal experimental design, participants were randomly assigned to a stress group or a control group, and data on LOC, CSE, and food intake were collected at 3 waves. The results indicated that LOC and CSE are serial mediators in the effect of stress on food intake, though the direct effect of stress conditions remained significant. Our findings support the applicability of escape theory to interpret why stress increases food intake, and exclusion of LOC as an indicator of CSE. Thus, the present study provides causal evidence on escape theory by shedding light on the sequential mediating effect of LOC and CSE. Future research need to pay more attention to the evaluative process in stress-induced eating.

Fuzzy Profiles

Person-centered approaches to organizational scholarship can provide critical insights into how sets of related constructs uniquely combine to predict outcomes. Within micro topics, scholars have begun to embrace the use of latent profile analysis (LPA), identifying constellations of constructs related to organizational commitment, turnover intentions, emotional labor, recovery, and well-being, to name a few. Conversely, macro scholars have utilized fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) to examine numerous phenomena, such as acquisitions and business strategies, as configurations of explanatory conditions associated with firm-level outcomes. What remains unclear, however, is the extent to which these two approaches deliver similar versus unique insights when applied to the same topic. In this paper, we offer an overview of the ways these two methods converge and diverge, and provide an empirical demonstration by applying both LPA and fsQCA to examine a multidimensional personality construct—core self-evaluations (CSE)—in relation to job satisfaction. In so doing, we offer guidance for scholars who are either choosing between these two methods, or are seeking to use the two methods in a complementary, theory-building manner.

Taking the chance: Core self-evaluations predict relative gain in job resources following turnover

Core self-evaluations (CSE) might account for relative gains in job resources across time, especially in situations when these individual differences affect behavior that is relevant for development of job resources. This longitudinal study tests CSE as an individual resource that predicts relative gain in job resources and job satisfaction among job beginners who change or stay with their employer. A questionnaire was filled in by 513 adolescents shortly before the end of vocational training and one year later. Our results replicate previous findings suggesting that job satisfaction is affected by CSE directly and indirectly through the perception of job resources. Multi-group structural equation analysis showed that only leavers had a longitudinal indirect effect of CSE on job satisfaction at the end of vocational training via job resources during their first year of employment. Our findings imply that turnover includes opportunities to optimize one’s circumstances and that CSE helps to attain resourceful jobs.