Locus of control, personality and depression symptoms in cancer: Testing a moderated mediation model.

OBJECTIVE To investigate the mediator role of locus of control on the relationship between the Big Five personality traits and the manifestation of depression symptoms in cancer outpatients. METHOD Participants consisted of 220 cancer outpatients (138 women and 82 men), evaluated individually at the hospital waiting room. The measures applied were as follows: The NEO-Five Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI), Multidimensional Health Locus of Control (MHLC) Scale and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). RESULTS The factor structure of NEO-FFI was reexamined. A moderated mediation model was found for the powerful others external locus of control (LOC), depression symptoms and extraversion and …