Why Sense of Control is Key to Mattering

For a long time social scientists understood the importance of a sense of control on our well-being, but it wasn’t until Michael Marmot published the Whitehall studies that the magnitude of the impact was understood. The British scientist studied the lives of thousands of British Civil servants. He followed up the lives of government employees for over 25 years. After he eliminated all other possible sources of health and illness, he realized that workers who experienced little control over their jobs were two, three, and even four times more likely to die prematurely than those who experienced a lot of control over their jobs.

            Marmot divided the civil servants into four groups: Managers, professionals, clerical, and others. Managers had the most amount of control over their jobs whereas the group called “other” had the least. Professionals were second and clerical staff third. Compared to managers, professionals were twice as likely to die, clerical staff three times as likely, and the group called other, which included people with few skills, four times more likely to die prematurely.

            Sense of control is a key mechanism in mattering. The more we exercise control, the more we add value to ourselves and others. The more we feel controlled by others, the less we feel valued, since our ability to behave autonomously is diminished. The implications of Marmot’s studies are far-reaching. What can we do as teachers, parents, mangers, and friends to augment the sense of control of our children, peers, employees, and neighbors? Their longevity might depend on it.

 Dr. Isaac Prilleltensky is an award-winning academic and author. He is also a coach, consultant and a researcher. His latest book, co-authored with his wife, Dr. Ora Prilleltensky, is How People Matter: Why it Affects Health, Happiness, Love, Work, and Society (Cambridge University Press, 2021). Press here to pre-order.