Attitude as a social psychology concept

1. ATTITUDES

2. ATTITUDES
...)
...a psychological tendency that is expressed by
evaluating a particular entity with some degree of favor
or disfavor.

3. Attitude Structure
u Three-component model views attitudes as
having three components:
u Affective = feelings about the attitude
object
u Behavioural = predisposition to act towards
the attitude object in a certain way
u Cognitive = beliefs about the attitude
object
u Any given attitude may be based in lesser or
greater amounts on any of these components

4. How are attitudes formed?
1. Mere exposure theory
Simply exposing people repeatedly will lead to positive
attitude
2. Classical conditioning theory
A kind of learning that occurs when
• a neutral stimulus (A) becomes so strongly associated
with another stimulus(B) that results in a learned
response.
• Then A alone causes that response.

5. 3. Operant conditioning theory
The consequences of behavior lead to learning
– Positive reinforcement
– Negative reinforcement
4. Social learning theory
Learning that occurs when our behavior is
influenced by the actions of others called
models

6. 5. Self-perception theory
Attitudes are inferred from behaviour
6. The influence of media
7. Genetic Factors
Innate emotional responses that are biologically
determined

7. 7
Genetic
Influences on
Attitudes
Olson et al., 2001.

8. 8. Functional Approach
attitudes are formed to serve some functions
 Value-Expressive function
enable us to express who we are and what we believe in
 Ego-defensive function
enable us to project internally-held conflicts onto
others (e.g., homophobia)
 Knowledge function
enable us to know the world
 Utilitarian Function
Enable us to gain rewards and avoid punishment

9. Attitudes may not predict
behavior because of
 Personal factors
 The person may hold other attitudes
 The person may be motivated by other attitudes
 The person maynot know what to do
 Situational Factors
 Cultural norms
 Accessibility
 Real or implied presence of others
 Unforeseen circumstances

10. When do attitudes predict
behaviour?
u Attitude-behaviour specificity
The more specific the attitude the higher the predictability
 Time factor
The shorter the time between the measurement of attitudes
and behaviour the higher the predictability
u Attitude strength
The stronger the attitude the higher the predictability
Attitude strength is determined by
Knowledge
Accessibility
u Theory of planned action

11. Social Influence
Is an attempt by one or more people to change the attitude
or behavior of one or more people
Major forms of social influence
1. Conformity
2. Compliance
3. Obedience

12. Conformity
Change in behavior in response to real or imagined
pressure from others
SOME REASONS WHY WE CONFORM
u For approval and acceptance (normative social influence
– conforming to group pressure out of a need for
acceptance and approval)
u Need for more information (informational social
influence-conforming to group pressure out of a need for
information or direction)
Automatic Mimicry and the Chameleon Effect
chameleon effect - the unconscious mimicry of the
expressions, mannerisms, movements, and other behaviors of
those with whom one is interacting

13. When conformity?
u Expertise and Status
u Group size
u Group cohesiveness
u Cultural factors
u Social acceptance
u Unanimity
u Anonymity
u The ambiguity of the task
u Gender

14. Compliance
u A change in behavior prompted by a direct
request
Compliance techniques
Tactics based on consistency
Foot-in-the-door technique
requesters begin with a small request and then,
when it is granted, escalate to a larger one

15. u Low-ball tactic
an offer or deal is changed to make it less
attractive to the target person after this person
has accepted it.
The "bait and switch" technique
Attract with a cheap deal, once in, push them
toward a more costly deal .
Labeling

16. Tactics based on reciprocity
 Door-in-the-face technique
requesters begin with a large request and then,
when this is refused, retreat to a smaller one
That’s-not-all technique
requesters offer additional benefits to target
persons before they have decided whether to
comply with or reject specific requests

17. Tactics based on scarcity
Playing-hard-to-get
suggesting that a person or object is scarce and
hard to obtain
Deadline technique
target persons are told that they have only limited
time to take advantage of some offer or to
obtain some item

18. u Tactics based on friendship or liking
u Ingratiation—requesters first induce
target to like them
u Use flattery, improve one’s appearance,
emit positive nonverbal cues, do small
favors for target person
Social validation
u We comply with requests that are in line with
our view of others like ourselves
 Giving reason

19. Persuasion
Is a deliberate attempt to change the attitude or
behaviour of other through message
 People who speak quickly are more persuasive
than people who speak slowly
 Messages that arouse strong emotions (such as
fear) are more effective
 People with low self-esteem can easily be
persuaded than those with high self-esteem

20. Obedience
u Going along with a direct command
SOME FACTORS RELATED TO OBEDIENCE
u Power of authority: people in positions of
authority have extraordinary power to elicit
obedience
u Modeling/imitation: seeing what other people
do in situations can impact obedience

21. u Distance
u Having charismatic leadership
u Immediacy
u Gradual escalation

22. Resisting Obedience
u Ways to resist obedience
u take responsibility for any harm produced
u realize total submission is inappropriate
u question authority’s motives
u increase awareness of the power of the
situation

23. Thank you

24. Questions