What is the USK technique? The level of subjective control - this abbreviation is deciphered. This name refers to a specific testing technique or to diagnose the level of the locus of control, its internality-externality.
In simple words, this is a way to determine how much a person is ready to take responsibility both for events in his own life and for what is happening around him. This testing is often called the "level of subjective control of Rotter", by the name of the founder of this technique. However, in practice, people go through a system of questions developed on the basis of the Rotter test at the Bekhterev Research Institute at the end of the last century.
What is the given technique?
A classic study of the level of subjective control is a test questionnaire consisting of forty-four points. All paragraphs contained in it are divided or balanced in accordance with three main, indicative parameters:
- internality-externality;
- emotional signs;
- attribution direction.
Such a division of the paragraphs of the assessment questionnaire significantly increases the reliability of the result obtained, almost completely eliminating the variant of errors arising due to the short-term emotional state of a person or, more simply, mood.
Internality-externality
What is internality-externality? This is the first question that everyone who is interested in the test for the level of subjective control is asked. Under this concept is a person’s predisposition to a certain form of control over himself and events in the surrounding reality.
The name itself comes from two Latin expressions:
- externus - this word is translated as “external”;
- internus, which means "internal."
Diagnosis of the level of subjective control uses this concept as a basic, determining one. This means that if a person is inclined to explain the events occurring in his life with those decisions that he made with his actions, then he has an internal or internal type of control.
In the event that people explain the current life situation by the presence of any external factors - fate, karma, a combination of circumstances, happy accidents, natural phenomena, help from others, decisions of parents or superiors, then they have an external or external appearance exercise control.
The methodology for studying the level of subjective control is built in a specific way, but it is extremely simple. People prone to the internal form of control give positive answers to questions. Those who gravitate toward the external type, respectively, respond negatively. Those who are characterized by both types of control, show a mixed result.
Emotional signs
Emotional signs are the relationship between desires and opportunities. That is, it is a reaction to a combination of a specific incentive and practical opportunities for taking any actions to achieve the desired.
Accordingly, negative emotions are formed in the face of difficulties or in the absence of opportunities, as well as, if necessary, to perform actions harmful from the point of view of a person or of little interest to him. Positive emotions arise under favorable circumstances to achieve the desired circumstances and at the same time carry out useful actions that people like.
When the level of subjective control is determined, a person is invited to consider both negative and positive situations. Thus, the emotional background of the personality is revealed.
Attribution Direction
Under attribution in psychology is understood the mechanism of rational activity, during which a person explains the reasons motivating something else. Among the people, this saying corresponds to the proverb “Judges from his bell tower”. This mechanism has arisen naturally and is necessary, since objective information obtained in the processes of observation or communication is not enough for social interaction.
How is the level of subjective control determined in this case? The technique is simple: the testee is asked questions that use third-person and first-person formulations. According to what the answers will be, the direction of thought characteristic of a person is determined when drawing up opinions about others.
How are the results handled?
To determine the level of subjective control, it is not enough just to answer questions, you need to wait for the processing of test results.
Processing the data obtained as a result of the survey includes several stages:
- on a specific scale or key, a “raw” generalized score is calculated;
- the results obtained are transformed into sten;
- data sten are entered in a personal profile.
Stan is an expression derived from the English phrase standart ten, which translates into Russian as "standard ten." In other words, this is a centered, generalized and normalized assessment, which develops in the process of standardization of available psychophysiological data, indicators.
On which scales are points scored?
The method of researching the level of subjective control involves seven keys, each of which has its own scale.
They are called like this:
- IO - general internality.
- ID is the internality of achievements.
- IN - internal failure.
- IP is the internality of family relationships.
- IP - the internality of industrial relations.
- IM - the interpersonal relationships.
- FROM - the internality of health and disease.
Indicators that would be less or, conversely, more significant, the test for the level of subjective control does not have. To obtain a reliable and complete result, all data is important without exception.
General internality
This scale demonstrates the degree of development of subjective control inherent in a person. In other words, it shows how much the respondent feels like a master in a given situation.
A high score means that a person easily takes responsibility for everything that happens in his life and his inner circle. People who received high scores in this section of the questionnaire believe that everything that happens to them or happens around them is a result of their choices, committed actions and decisions made.
A low score, respectively, indicates a reverse life position. As a rule, fatalists and people who deeply believe in God get low results on this scale. Of course, emotionally immature individuals, as well as those who are prone to infantilism, will also demonstrate poor results.
The scatter of the evaluation criterion on this scale is from 0 to 44 points.
Internality of Achievements
In this section, the test for the level of subjective control demonstrates what people associate their achievements with, as they are explained.
A large number of points are gained by those who feel confident that they owe their life achievements to personal qualities, education, their own efforts, the wisdom of decisions made and choices made. In life, such people always have a very tangible, specific goal and plan of action necessary to achieve it.
Those who gain a small number of points are dreamers, representatives of creative professions, deprived of a commercial vein and other personalities “floating in the clouds”. Such people sincerely mistake their own successes in life, any achievements for happy occasions, the results of the intervention of higher forces, or someone’s goodwill. In other words, such people are not inclined to assume the responsibility of the Doge for quite significant achievements and successes.
The scatter of the evaluation criterion on this scale is from 0 to 12 points.
Failure internality
This is a very specific scale. It shows how a person has developed a sense of control in relation to negative, negative emotions, situations, circumstances.
High scores indicate that a person is inclined to take the blame on himself, and low, respectively, indicate the opposite. Those who gain few points in this section, not only do not admit their own guilt, they also transfer it to other people or to fate, circumstances, Heaven.
The scatter of the evaluation criterion on this scale is from 0 to 12 points.
Internality of family, production, and interpersonal relationships
What these rating scales show is clear from their names. The principle of interpreting the results in these sections is the same as in the rest. In other words, the more points the person interviewed scores, the more responsibility he takes upon himself in family, production, and interpersonal relationships.
A high score, in this case, indicates not only the willingness to be responsible for everything that happens, but also about the developed need for monitoring. In other words, high results are demonstrated by people who are inclined to take important decisions and, to some extent, dictatorship and tyranny.
The scatter of the evaluation criterion on these scales is (in points):
- family - from 0 to 10;
- production - from 0 to 8;
- interpersonal - from 0 to 4.
Internality of health and disease
A curious enough rating scale. The test results in this section demonstrate a person’s position regarding his own health.
The more points the respondent scores, the more responsible he is about the state of his body. People who show good results on this grading scale regularly visit medical offices in their lives, get vaccinated, and prevent colds. In other words, they completely control the state of their own health and feel confident that it completely depends on their actions.
Accordingly, those who demonstrate poor results within the framework of this scale do not have the habit of associating their own lifestyle with the presence or absence of diseases. These people prefer not to attend medical offices without urgent need, do not get vaccinated, and generally do not show concern for their own and others' health. They are quite able to go to the workplace with a fever, cough and runny nose and infect everyone around. They are characterized by a position of "self-pass", such people prefer not to use medicines.
The scatter of the evaluation criterion on this scale is from 0 to 4 points.