This document discusses attitudes and how they are formed. It defines attitude as an evaluating statement that is either favorable or unfavorable about an object, person, or event. Attitudes have three components: cognition, affect, and behavior. Attitudes are formed based on one's environment, experiences, education, and personal factors. It is possible to change attitudes by understanding the barriers and factors that influence formation, and then using techniques like providing new information, peer influence, or getting people involved in improving a situation. People formulate attitudes as their experiences and exposures alter their perceptions, beliefs, and interests over time.

1. Attitude
ASSIGNMENT 5
Attitude
Organization Behavior
Dr. D. Gopala Krishna
TITLE: A Study on Pragmatic Approaches and
Quality Initiatives for Enhancing Teachers’ Caliber
in
Post Graduate Institutes offering MBA Programme
under Bangalore University
Under the Guidance of
Dr. T.V. Raju
Director, RV Institute of Management, Bangalore
CANARA BANK SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES
BANGALORE UNIVERSITY
SUBMITTED BY
Shivananda R Koteshwar
PhD Research Scholar, 2013, REG# 350051
Shivananda
R
Koteshwar,
PhD
Research
Scholar,
Bangalore
University

2. Attitude
1. Define Attitude
Attitudes are evaluating statements – either favorable or unfavorable, concerning
objects, people or events. They reflect how one feels about something.
There are three components of attitude – Cognition (Information), Affect
(emotional) and Behavior. Cognition results in evaluation, Affective results in
feeling and Behavioral results in action (either positive or negative)
Psychology definition: “A complex mental state involving beliefs and feelings and
values and dispositions to act in certain ways”
2. How attitudes are formed?
Factors affecting the formation of attitude define the “How” part of attitude
formation.
Four main factors affect attitude formation:
1) Environment: Home Environment, School Environment, Work
environment, Social Environment, Society and Association
2) Experience
3) Education: Formal and Informal, Media
4) Personal Factors: Beliefs, Interest, Personality, Tradition, culture,
Perception
3. Is it possible to change the attitude? If yes, give reasons
Yes it is possible to change the attitude.
To change attitude, it’s very important to understand 2 components:
1. Barriers (Prior commitments and Insufficient information)
2. Factors, which affect the attitude formation like Environment (Home,
School Work, Social, Society, Association), Experience and Education
(Formal and Informal)
Once we understand these two components, we can influence the person to change
his/her attitude by using the right intervention tool.
With right environment, experience and education, one can make an impact on the
personal factors (Beliefs, Interest, Tradition, Culture and Perception). This impact
or change can be either positive or negative.
Barriers can be overcome and attitudes can be changed. Some of the techniques
are:
1. Providing new information: This sometimes change a person’s beliefs and
in the process, his/her attitudes.
2. Use of Fear: Fear can change attitudes however degree of fear is important
to the final outcome. Moderate levels are preferred to high degrees of fear
arousal.
3. Resolving discrepancies between behavior and attitude
4. Influence of friends or peers: Persuasion of friends, family and peer has a
high degree of influence in attitude change
Shivananda
R
Koteshwar,
PhD
Research
Scholar,
Bangalore
University

3. Attitude
5. The co-opting approach: This approach is taking people who are
dissatisfied with a situation and getting them involved in improving the
same situation.
4. Why people formulate attitudes?
To understand why people formulate attitudes, we need to relook at the factors,
which affect the attitude formation. The factors are:
1) Environment: Home Environment, School Environment, Work
environment, Social Environment, Society and Association
2) Experience
3) Education: Formal and Informal, Media,
4) Personal Factors: Beliefs, Interest, Personality, Tradition, culture,
Perception
People formulate attitudes because experiences and exposure alter perceptions,
beliefs and interests either in positive or negative way.
Shivananda
R
Koteshwar,
PhD
Research
Scholar,
Bangalore
University