14.2 Theories of motivation Motivation and attribution One concept central to attribution theory is locus of control. The word“ locus"means“ location”. A person with an internal locus of control is one who believes that success or failure is due to his or her own efforts or abilities. An external locus of control -, luck, task difficulty, or other peoples actions. Researches found students high in internal locus of control have better grades and test scores than do students of the same intelligence who are low in internal locus of control14.2 Theories of motivation • Motivation and attribution • One concept central to attribution theory is locus of control. The word “locus”means “location”. A person with an internal locus of control is one who believes that success or failure is due to his or her own efforts or abilities. An external locus of control,---, luck, task difficulty, or other people’s actions. • Researches found students high in internal locus of control have better grades and test scores than do students of the same intelligence who are low in internal locus of control