An integrative framework for the human sense of control

Being empowered and having a sense of control are central determinants of human well-being. However, there is currently no agreed-upon definition for the sense of control. We offer a prospective characterization as 'a priori readiness to perform tasks that will be announced in the future.' We show that this highlights three underlying factors that variously underpin previous conceptions of control: (i) action availability, (ii) certain achievability of potentially desired outcomes, and (iii) possible achievability of potentially desired outcomes. We formalize this characterization with a measure of controllability that precisely balances these factors via a single parameter. Our proposed measure accurately predicts the great majority of human preferences in two novel, theory-guided experiments, where participants prepare themselves to collect future rewards or avoid future punishments. Notably, our formulation captures substantial differences in participants' preference for certainty versus possibility. Our findings collectively provide instrumental insights into how individuals sense control.