Investigating the Relationship between Belief in Locus of Control and Academic Self-Concept; The Mediating Role of Academic Self-Efficacy

Safaeian, Nooshin; Sedighi Arfaee, Fariborz; Talebi Baadi, Maryam

doi:10.30473/etl.2026.76610.4550

Investigating the Relationship between Belief in Locus of Control and Academic Self-Concept; The Mediating Role of Academic Self-Efficacy

Document Type : Research

Authors

¹ Psychology, Faculty of Humanities and Law, Kashan University, Kashan, Iran

² Department of psychology, Faculty of Humanities, University of kashan, Kashan, Iran

³ Department of Psychology, Faculty of Humanities, Kashan University, Kashan, Iran.

10.30473/etl.2026.76610.4550

Abstract

The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between the belief in locus of control and academic self-concept, considering the mediating role of academic self-efficacy among students of the University of Kashan. This research employed a quantitative approach within the framework of structural equation modeling. The statistical population included 1,700 students from the Faculties of Humanities and Law at the University of Kashan, from which 270 students were selected. The Rutter Locus of Control Scale (1966), Liu and Wang’s Academic Self-Concept Questionnaire (2005), and Norouzi et al.’s Academic Self-Efficacy Questionnaire (2013) were distributed among them. After removing incomplete data, responses from 230 participants were analyzed. The results indicated that external locus of control was negatively and significantly related to academic self-concept (β = -0.213) and academic self-efficacy (β = -0.382). Moreover, academic self-efficacy showed a strong positive relationship with academic self-concept (β = 0.789). The mediation analysis further revealed that academic self-efficacy played a significant mediating role in the relationship between external locus of control and academic self-concept (β = -0.301). These findings suggest that a tendency toward an external locus of control may undermine individuals’ academic self-image by weakening their self-efficacy. Conversely, enhancing academic self-efficacy can mitigate the negative effects of external control and strengthen students’ academic self-concept. Accordingly, designing educational and psychological interventions aimed at improving self-efficacy beliefs may contribute to better self-concept and increased academic motivation among students.

Keywords