RESEARCH ON ATTRIBUTION OF CAUSALITY OR INTERNAL VERSUS EXTERNAL LOCUS OF CONTROL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN DELINQUENT AND NON-DELINQUENT SUBJECTS HAS SUGGESTED THAT DELINQUENTS ARE SIGNIFICANTLY MORE EXTERNAL IN ORIENTATION THAN NON-DELINQUENTS. IT HAS ALSO BEEN SUGGESTED THAT DELINQUENTS ARE LESS ACHIEVEMENT MOTIVATED THAN NON-DELINQUENTS. THIS STUDY SOUGHT TO TEST THESE FINDINGS FOR A SAMPLE OF BLACK ADOLESCENTS. TWO MEASURES WERE USED - THE INTERNAL-EXTERNAL LOCUS OF CONTROL SCALE AND THE DRIVE OR MOTIVATION SCALE. A 2X2 DESIGN WITH TWO DEPENDANT MEASURES (LOCUS OF CONTROL AND ACHIEVEMENT MOTIVATION) WAS EMPLOYED CONSISTING OF DELINQUENTS VERSUS NON-DELINQUENTS AND MALES VERSUS FEMALES. THE RESULTS DID NOT SUPPORT THE NOTION THAT DELINQUENTS ARE MORE EXTERNAL IN PERCEIVED LOCUS OF CONTROL OR LOWER IN ACHIEVEMENT MOTIVATION THAN NON-DELINQUENTS. IMPLICATIONS OF THESE FINDINGS ARE DISCUSSED. (AUTHOR ABSTRACT MODIFIED)