Do nursing homes and assisted living facilities have to be so depressing? Is there a way to help senior citizens have more energy and more enthusiasm for life? What do psychologists know that you should know about how to help the elderly feel good about life? It has to do with the concept of personal control (also referred to as locus of control). Learn about it in this review of a classic study in psychology. This week on The Psych Files podcast.

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The Classic Article Reviewed in This Episode

Langer, E. & Rodin J. (1976). The Effects of Choice and Enhanced Personal Responsibility for the Aged: A Field Experiment inan Institutional Setting. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 34, 191-198.

“…man’s primary motivation propensity is to be effective in producing changes in his environment. man strives to be a causal agent, to be the primary locus of causation for, or the origin of, his behavior; he strives for personal causation.” - deCharms, 1968