What Is "Locus Of Control" And What Does It Have To Do With Debt?

      As I am currently in the process of renewing my NACC Credit Counselor Certification, one of the chapters has to do with "Rotter's Locus of Control". The word Locus is latin and basically means position, and J.B. Rotter was a psychologist whose work goes back to the 60's. The Locus of Control idea is that as humans we tend to think one of two ways about the circumstances and events that shape our lives. Internal Locus of Control people believe that the circumstances and events surrounding them depend on their own ability and behavior, and conversely, External Locus of Control people see the world as driven strictly by luck or chance.

    So what does all of this have to do with debt you ask? Almost everything. If you have an external Locus of Control and you find yourself in a position of being oppressed by debt, regardless of how you got there, then you are one of those people who looks for a magical debt relief program that will take all of the burden off of you and allow the debt to disappear. If you do enroll in any type of debt settlement or debt management program and hit even the tiniest snag, you will blame everyone involved for not doing there job, instead of calmly taking control and resolving the problem. If you cannot make your payment one month, it will be because you have chosen a bad program, before any other rational reason. You may be one of those people who "shop" for a Debt Management Program quote, thinking that you will somehow get better pricing from one program over another, but never actually go forward with anything. You believe that the fact that you have a debt problem is the fault of the banks, the credit card companies, the casino, your spouse who does not fulfill your needs or any other number of possibilities. I do not mean to be harsh here, but if you see yourself in any of this, there is hope for you.

  What about an internal "Locus of Control". If you are one of these people, then you are way ahead of the game. You realize that regardless of how the debt problem happened, you refuse to allow it to get the better of you and will do what is necessary to gain self empowerment and debt freedom. You will find one credit counselor you trust and let he or she help counsel you on what options are available to you so that your debt issue may be resolved once and for all. You will be open to changing your behaviors so that you avoid the debt pitfalls of the future. You will take what the counselor has to offer and use it. Learning to budget, understanding various program options like debt settlement, Bankruptcy, a debt management program, or how to deal with the creditors yourself in a more effective manner.

  If you would like to know if you are an internal or external "Locus of Control" person you can take the test developed by J.B. Rotter by visiting: http://www.psych.uncc.edu/pagoolka/LC.html , doing so will give you insight into yourself and help you gain knowledge to empower yourself in all areas of your life.

Another thing that will empower you in the area of debt is to subscribe to the newsletter feed from this blog. You can do so by visiting:  http://freecreditcounselingblog.typepad.com/creditcounseling/, and simply leaving your email address. Your information will not be shared, nor will you be bombarded with emails. If you have found this article to be helpful, or would like more information about your particular debt situation and what can be done, please feel free to contact me using the contact information below.

Written By:
Steven V Ciantro
Nifce Certified Credit Counselor
American Debt Enders
Help@americandebtenders.com
877-766-2465

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