Social Psychology

1. 1Attitude Strength
Attitude Strength:
An Exclusive Assessment of Zen Practices
Ng J.
Taylor’s University

2. 2Attitude Strength
Abstract
This paper focus on the strong attitudes about religion and faithfulness of a female Christian
who embraced Zen Buddhism practices. Numerous theories have been projected to elucidate
the strong attitudes of religionist. Although the literature covers a wide diversity of such
theories, this review will emphasizes on five major themes which arise frequently throughout
the literature reviewed. These themes are: the mindfulness of myth-deconstruction, the
eminence of inaccessible intellectual approaches, the meditative approaches to Japanese
roots, the desertion of ego-consciousness and the cessation of ambiance. Although the
literature addresses these themes in a variety of frameworks, this paper will primarily
concentrates on their application to attitude strength.

3. 3Attitude Strength
Despite the emptiness and desecration of death comprehended from the biblical
context, the female Christian isn’t jaundiced about the conceptual purity and cleanliness
initiated by the Zen Buddhism. The attitude strength and stability of the female Christian
could also solidified through her inquisitiveness on vanishing cycle of nations in historical
context, and her certainty and high introspection on self-conscience. Countless literature
contexts has ascertained people’s interests for religion lead to the assurance and confidence in
their attitudes, yet the frameworks and perspectives of attitude strength regarding to the
female Christian’s religious practices must be scrutinized.
Literature Review
Strength of an Attitude
Firstly, certain attitudes stronger than others in terms of perceiver’s confidence and
alteration difficulty (Petty and Krosnick, 1995). According to David Boninger and others
(1995) ascertained the attitude traits people concerned passionately are, ‘(1) directly affected
their own self-interests, (2) related to deeply held philosophical, political and religious
values; and (3) were of concern to their close friends, family, and social ingroups.
Secondly, the like-minded people in embracement enhanced the strength and
resistance of the perceivers’ attitudes (Saul Kassin, Steven Fein, Hazel Rose Markus, 2011).
Thirdly, the sensibly cognisant increased consistency of the behaviour.
Thirdly, according to Saul Kassin and others (2011), the strength of an attitude
depends on by what methods of perceiving information, specifically the stability and
prediction are more on directed personal experiences rather than undirected, second-hand
information.
Fourthly, in Zakary Tormala and Richard Petty’s (2002) research, people with varied
degree of certainty about an attitude hold a positive resistance and position inclination about

4. 4Attitude Strength
attitudes’ alteration in response to persuasive communication. Fifthly, conferring to the
principle of Fazio and Towles-Schwen (1999), attitudes which are highly prone to awareness
produced strong attitudes.
Attitude Strength and Stability
Allport (1935) ascertained attitudes as “often persist throughout life in the way in
which they were fixed in childhood or in youth.” The impression inclined to people’s
thinking consistently as Cantril (1947) argued that “attitude, once formed, are more or less
enduring states of readiness”, as higher clarification instilled when Petty and Cacioppo
(1981) defined attitude as “an enduring positive or negative feeling about some person,
object, or issue.”
Conferring to these principles, Bennett (1975), G. D. Bishop, Hamilton, and
McConay (1980), Brown (1970) and Hovland (1959) confirmed the persistence of attitude
can reach years or decades. However, later experimental research proven the attitudes were
prone to flexibility and alteration. Abelson (1988) suggested “conviction” as an extraordinary
measurement of attitudes which embraced three compartments: emotional commitment,
cognitive collaboration, and ego preoccupation.
Bargh, Chaiken, Govender, and Pratto (1992) insisted that certain attitudes are likely
to have ambivalence characteristics – both a positive and a negative evaluation of an attitude
object. Maureen Wang Erber, Sara D. Hodges, and Timothy D. Wolson (n. d.) defined ego-
involvement as the magnitude of people’s latitude of rejection.
Zen Buddhism
Zen emphasizes the awakening of inner self, compassion and wisdom, as by means of
spiritual enlightenment instead of scriptures studies, religious rites, devotional practices and
good works; question and answer riddles, known as koans, promote the practices of

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enlightenment through unconventional mode of logical thinking. Additionally to the
awakening meditations, masters involved Zen in poetry, painting and calligraphy for their
religious manifestation, such as the inexplicable expression of acceptance. Conferring to the
Zen states’ defensive teaching and, prayers and incarnations offerings, as such “these
teachings influenced the warrior class and led to a Zen influence over the martial arts of
archery and swordsmanship.”
Utilizing these literature to form theoretical assumptions, the female Christian accrued
exuberance and wisdom in terms of her meditative status conferring to her religion. These
aroused self-assurance are transformed into philosophy methodologies and spiritual reviews.
With that stated, the method that follows will attempt to answer the following research
questions:
(1) How Zen Buddhism methodologies and practices cause greater attitude strength to the
female Christian?
(2) Why Zen Buddhism methodologies and practices cause greater attitude strength to the
female Christian?
Methodology
In attempt to answer the research questions, a combination of experimental
assumptions and personal experiences would be used. The nature of this study would require
the application of measurement on attitude strength to dimensionally analyse the social
perspectives that initiated the female Christian on regular Buddhism practices. This study
would be attempting to discover which context has the greatest positive influence on her
spiritual and personal philosophy and psychology.
Different Religion

6. 6Attitude Strength
The attempt of practising Buddhism in form of Christian beliefs had enlivened the
female Christian to the values of persistence, commitment, perseverance and metamorphosis.
The transformation of religious beliefs to the higher approachability and acceptance period by
period has formed her religious faith and convictions in (1) enthusiasm of ideal manners and
propriety, (2) the concentration of mind, soul and spirit in uniform strength, attention and
awareness, (3) the meditation of people’s mind in projection and self-enlightenment.
Spiritual Myth
These behavioural expression is highlighted during hallucination and depression
period – the companion of spiritual myth. Consequently, the determination and pursuing of
cleanliness and purity is directed to the motivational and intentional philosophy and
psychology of fulfilling the status of mind in terms of satisfaction and freedom beyond
impurity thoughts, emotions and actions; which good and agreeable is sought as clean, and
bad and disagreeable is sought unclean, thereby to cultivate a clean mind and a clean spirit.
Life, Deathand Afterlife Cycle
The practice of Zen Buddhism settle on the behaviour attended to afterlife myth,
custom and religion in the logical thinking revolving in esteem, reverence and ethnic’s
honour. These cognitive collaboration indirectly and significantly attended a person to
civilisations’ histories that have life, death and afterlife cycle of a ‘person’, which is the
entity associated with the country’s respect and appreciation.
Life and Death
The practice of Zen Buddhism in additionally focus on status or philosophy
concerning on one’s spiritual prominence, as in two distinct mental impressions and decisions
– life and death.

7. 7Attitude Strength
As Zen teaching elucidated, “Zen has no secrets other than seriously thinking about
life and death (Mikiso Hane, 2013). The crucial thinking of life from death is to meditate the
busy, buzzling, and sophisticated life in different self-nature and self-enlightenment, with the
emphasis of attitude focused on the purity and moral outlook.
The meditation of death is the accumulation and determination of wisdom concerning
on one about his or her afterlife’s mind and soul; on the other hand, the enlightenment of
death prioritized on the exuberance and joy in afterlife, where none of the mortal bondages or
burdens could imprisoned freedom and truth of our voices.
Social Perspectives
The cultivation of attentiveness truly enhanced the understanding of Japanese
philosophy, culture and economy that affected by religion in the path of their civilization.

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References
Kassin, S., Fein, S., & Markus, H. R. (2011). Social Psychology. Belmont: Wadsworth.
Erber, M. W., Hodges, S. D., & Wilson, T. D. (1995). Attitude Strength, Attitude Stability,
and the Effects of Analyzing Reasons. Attitude Strength: Antecedents and Consequences,
433-454.
History of Zen Buddhism. National Gallery of Victoria Website – The Art of Zen Education
Resource.
Zen – A Living Tradition. National Gallery of Victoria Website – The Art of Zen Education
Resource.
Zen (2015). ReligionFacts Website.
Hane, M. (2013). Japan – A Short History. Norhaven A/S, Denmark: Oneworld.