Historical Changes in Control Belief Trajectories

Abstract

The present research examines whether and how well-documented historical changes in resource availability, social embedding, technology, and social norms also manifest in control beliefs—a key psychological marker of individual health and well-being. Drawing on longitudinal data from five waves of the German Socio-Economic Panel (N = 42,158) spanning over 20 years, we analyzed control belief trajectories of individuals aged 16 to 98 years, born between 1914 and 1989. Our results reveal that compared to middle-aged and older adults born earlier in historical time, those born later reported higher levels of control beliefs and maintained these into higher ages. We also found that gender and income disparities in control beliefs have narrowed among more recent cohorts. In contrast, socialization disparities between individuals from the former Eastern vs. Western part of Germany have widened over the 30 years since reunification. We also found that the experience of unemployment or disability is associated with larger event-related decrements in control beliefs today than in the past. In contrast, the associations between education (moderate positive) and religiosity (modest negative) with control beliefs have not changed. We discuss potential drivers of the observed changes and their broader conceptual and societal implications.