The just world hypothesis provides an explanation for the finding that observers derogate victims. By admitting the appropriateness of a victim's fate., observers may develop a sense of control over the possibility of similar fates. Two experiments investigated the relationship between, the magnitude of motivation for control over the environment and tendency to derogate victims. In Experiment One, situational controllability and uncontrollability were manipulated within a learned helplessness procedure and derogation of a victimized stranger assessed. In Experiment Two, subjects completed the Need for Control and Belief in the Just World scales, measures of the motivation for environmental control and the tendency to derogate victims. The results indicate that motivation and need for control underlie victim derogation.

Internal and external locus-of-control individuals supplied the name and address of their "best friend" who was then asked to complete a locus-of-control scale. While friends predicted locus-of-control similarity, no actual similarity existed between them. These results are discussed in light of an attraction-friendship continuum.

The study investigated the effects of status and surveillance in the induction of social facilitation. The mere presence of an experimenter affected task performance, but the presence of an expert only influencedperformance when task surveillance was possible. The results are interpreted in light of Cottrell's (1968) theory.

34 subjects who scored internally and 34 externally on locus of control learned an instrumental response the reinforcement for which was listening to another person yield (large magnitude of reinforcement) or disagree (small magnitude of reinforcement). Contrary to previous evidence locus of control did not influence conditioning of response speed.