The Relationship Between Locus of Control and Teacher Burnout

S ummary . The purpose of this research was to investigate the relationship between locus of control, as measured by the Nowicki‐Strickland Adult Scale, and burnout as measured by the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI). A survey form containing these instruments was mailed to all special education teachers in 28 school districts in the north‐eastern United States. Of the initial 684 mailings, 469 were returned (69 per cent). An analysis of the data using Pearson product‐moment correlations revealed significant correlations between increasingly external locus of control orientation and increased perceptions of burnout on four of the six subscales of the MBI. Findings are discussed and a suggestion for future research presented.