A confirmatory factor analysis of the career locus of control scale with secondary school students in Kenya

Abstract

This article presents the confirmatory factor analysis of the 20 item career locus of control scale with a sample of 370 secondary school students. The instrument consists of 4 subscales measuring Internality, Luck, Helplessness, and Powerful Others. The overall internal reliability of the locus of control scale was satisfactory. The current study tested six models and verified four of the six models. External locus of control scores correlated significantly with measures of career decision self-efficacy, career indecision and vocational identity. Internal locus of control scores correlated significantly with career decision making self efficacy. Significant gender differences were noted in most of the subscales of career locus of control with males scoring significantly higher on the subscales measuring externality and females scoring significantly higher on the subscales measuring internality. Age was not related to any of the sub scales. The current study provides the validity data for the career locus of control scale using a Kenyan sample. Based on the results, other researchers may use the instrument to measure the career locus of control of Africans.