Causal uncertainty and psychological well-being: the moderating role of accommodation (secondary control)

Causal uncertainty about one's own outcomes (cu-own) is associated with negative affect,depression,and a lack of perceived primary control. we predicted that accommodation,or secondary control,would act as a psychological buffer for high-cu-own individuals,reducing negative affect and depression.we tested this hypothesis in two studies: one cross-sectional (study 1) and one longitudinal (study 2). participants completed measures of cu-own,harmony control,and depression in study 1 and measures of cu-own,harmony control,flexible goal adjustment,and negative affect in study 2. analyses reveal that the cu-own-depression and cu-own-negative affect associations were weaker when harmony control or flexible goal adjustment was high. additional analyses in studies 1 and 2 examined the roles played by primary control,locus of control,optimism,pessimism,and causal importance. implications for the cu and accommodation literatures are discussed. © 2010 by the society for personality and social psychology,inc.