Locus of Control of Israeli Women During the Transition to Marriage

Abstract

Sixty Israeli women were administered Rotter's (1966) Locus of Control Scale and Zung's (1965) Self-Rating Depression Scale 1 to 2 months prior to their marriages. Six to 8 weeks after they were married, they responded to Spanier's (1976) Dyadic Adjustment Scale and again to the Zung scale. There was a low but significant correlation between externality and depression following marriage. Mean depression scores for the total sample, and for women with internal, medium, and external locus of control (LOC) were significantly lower after marriage. Women with external LOC manifested significantly more change in depression scores before and after marriage and also rated themselves significantly less satisfied with their marriages. Depression prior to marriage was predictive of later marital dissatisfaction, and depression following marriage was highly correlated with concurrent dissatisfaction.