TY - JOUR T1 - An Economic Model of Locus of Control and the Human Capital Investment Decision JF - Journal of Human Resources JO - J Hum Resour SP - 701 LP - 721 DO - 10.3368/jhr.XXXVIII.3.701 VL - XXXVIII IS - 3 AU - Margo Coleman AU - Thomas DeLeire Y1 - 2003/07/01 UR - http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/XXXVIII/3/701.abstract N2 - We present an economic model of how teenagers’ outlooks—specifically their locus of control—affect their human capital investments. Locus of control measures the extent to which a person believes their actions affect their outcomes. The model allows locus of control to affect teenagers’ assessment of the return to education. The effect of eighth graders’ locus of control on high school completion and college attendance is examined using the National Educational Longitudinal Study. The results indicate that locus of control influences education decisions and suggests that locus of control operates through teenagers’ expectations of the returns to human capital investments. ER -