Children's locus of control beliefs as predictors of preoperative coping behavior.

This study examined the relationship between children's locus of control beliefs (as measured by the Nowicki-Strickland Locus of Control Scale) and their preoperative coping behavior. Subjects were 51 children between the ages of 8 and 12 who were scheduled for minor elective surgery. They were interviewed and each child's mode of coping was classified along a dimension termed avoidant-active. The relationships between sex, socioeconomic status, other demographic variables, and the type of preoperative information given to the child by the parent and surgeon were also evaluated. Results showed that children rated as active copers had more internal locus of control scores than children rated as avoidant or as using a combination of avoidant-active coping modes. Children rated as active were given more detailed information about their medical problem and surgery than children rated as using avoidant or a combination of avoidant-active coping modes. Internal locus of control was significantly related to higher socioeconomic status but not to sex or other demographic variables. Regression analysis showed that parent-doctor information and locus of control were independently predictive of coping.