Attitudes are evaluative statements that indicate one's feelings toward people, objects, events, or situations. Attitudes are complex and influenced by cognitive processes and experiences. They have cognitive, affective, and behavioral components. Attitudes are formed through classical and operant conditioning, vicarious learning from others, communication, and experiences. Theories of attitude formation include cognitive consistency theories like balance theory and congruity theory, and social judgment theories. Attitudes can be changed by providing information, influencing friends, communication, and addressing discrepancies, but prior commitments, strong commitments, publicly expressed attitudes, low credibility of the source, and insufficient information can act as barriers to attitude change.