Two Wisdoms, Two Pathways to Well-Being: Locus of Control among Tribal and Non-Tribal Youth in Jharkhand

Background: Locus of control is widely treated as a near-universal predictor of psychological well-being. Most supporting evidence comes from Western, individualist samples. Whether this link holds equally in indigenous Indian communities remains unclear. Objective: This study compared locus of control and psychological well-being between tribal (Adivasi) and non-tribal youth in Jharkhand, India, and tested whether community moderates the strength of the relationship between the two. Method: A cross-sectional comparative design was used with 500 youth (250 tribal, 250 non-tribal), stratified equally by employment status and gender. Participants completed a 24-item locus of control scale and Ryff's six-dimension Psychological Well-Being scale. Results: Non-tribal youth scored substantially higher than tribal youth on both locus of control, t(449.4) = 23.76, p < .001, d = 2.12, and psychological well-being, t(326.2) = 13.83, p < .001, d = 1.24, with the largest subscale gap on Environmental Mastery, d = 2.09. The correlation between locus of control and well-being was far stronger among non-tribal youth (r = .93) than tribal youth (r = .43), a difference confirmed by a Fisher z-test, z = 13.08, p < .001. Conclusion: Community identity shapes not only mean levels of agency and well-being but also how tightly the two are linked, suggesting tribal well-being draws on pathways beyond individual perceived control.