(4) FOUR CORE FEATURES OF ATTITUDE

II. SOCIAL THINKING

1. REFERENT
BEHAVIOR AND ATTITUDE
 Attitudes refer to a STIMULUS OBJECT.
ATTITUDE
2. EVALUATIONS
 A favorable or unfavorable EVALUATIVE
REACTION toward something or someone.  Attitudes refer to individuals’ JUDGMENTS to
 Often ROOTED in one’s BELIEF TARGET.
 EXHIBITED in one’s FEELINGS and
INTENDED BEHAVIOR. 3. MEMORY

BEHAVIOR  Attitudes are REPRESENTED in MEMORY.

 involves ACTION and RESPONSE to stimulation. 4. COGNITIVE, AFFECTIVE, and/or BEHAVIORAL

INFORMATION
ABC’S CONCEPT OF ATTITUDE
(3) THREE DIMENSIONS OF ATTITUDE

1. DIRECTION

 There are NEGATIVE or POSITIVE — FOR or

AGAINST dimension.

2. DEGREE

 There are amounts of degrees of LIKES and

DISLIKES attached to an attitude.

3. INTENSITY
AFFECT
 Attitudes have a dimension of INTENSITY or
 FEELINGS and EMOTIONS STRENGTH.
BEHAVIOR ARE WE ALL HYPOCRITES?
 OBSERVABLE or INTENDED ACTIONS  Social Psychologists found out that what people
COGNITION say OFTEN DIFFERS from what they do.
o Is our attitude always consistent with our
 KNOWLEDGE and BELIEFS behavior (observable actions)??

 WICKER (1969) OFFERED A SHOCKING MORAL HYPOCRISY

CONCLUSION:
 The motivation to APPEAR MORAL while acting
 People’s expressed attitudes HARDLY in one's self interest — and therefore AVOIDING
PREDICTED their varying behaviors. the cost of actually being moral.
o Student attitudes toward cheating bore little
relation to the likelihood of their actually
cheating.
o Attitudes toward the church were only modestly
linked with church attendance on any given
Sunday.
o Self-described racial attitudes provided little
clue to behaviors in actual situations.

HOW DO WE MEASURE ATTITUDE?

MEDICAL DOCTORS

 Measuring HEART RATE.

SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGIST

 NEVER get a DIRECT reading on attitudes.

 Rather, EXPRESSED attitudes.
WHEN SOCIAL INFLUENCES ON WHAT WE SAY ARE 4. WHEN THE CONSEQUENCE OF RESPONDING ON
MINIMAL ATTITUDE MAY BE NEGATIVE.

IMPLICIT (UNCONSCIOUS) ATTITUDES  SOCIAL PRESSURE or SANCTIONS can

influence behavior and lessen the consistency
 Our often unacknowledged INNER BELIEFS that between attitude and behavior.
may or may not correspond to our EXPLICIT
(conscious) attitudes. WHEN DOES OUR BEHAVIOR AFFECT OUR
ATTITUDE?
CONSISTENCY BETWEEN ATTITUDES AND
BEHAVIOR ROLES

1. WHEN THERE IS SELF-AWARENESS.  A SET OF NORMS that defines how people in a

given social position ought to BEHAVE.
 When people are SURE what their ATTITUDE is  College student
towards something, they are more likely to act in  Eldest child
accord with the attitude.  Mother
2. WHEN ATTITUDES ARE SALIENT.  Stanford Experiment: Prisoners & Prison
Guards
 When people are reminded that their BEHAVIOR
can be RELEVANT to their attitude, they are more  Actions also affects our MORAL ATTITUDES:
likely to act in accord with their attitude.  That which we have done, even if it is evil, we
3. WHEN THE ATTITUDE ISSUE IS SIGNIFICANT. tend to JUSTIFY as right.

 When people have a strong vested INTEREST in THEORIES ON ATTITUDE AND BEHAVIOR
the OUTCOME of their behavior, and believe that 1. THEORY OF REASONED ACTION
their ACTIONS will AFFECT them DIRECTLY,
there is high correspondence between their  This theory states that the best way to predict
attitude and behavior. whether people will perform some behavior is to
KNOW THEIR INTENTIONS.
4. WHEN ATTITUDE IS BASED ON DIRECT
EXPERIENCE.  Intentions displays in behavior have TWO
ELEMENTS such as:
 Behavior can be PREDICTED BETTER from
attitudes that are based on direct experience. 1. The person’s attitudes or evaluation of the
OBJECT, PERSON, or EVENT.
INCONSISTENCY BETWEEN ATTITUDES AND 2. The person’s subjective norm about
BEHAVIOR PERFORMING the behavior.
1. WHEN ATTITUDES COMPETE WITH EACH OTHER.  NORM
 For example, a man has positive attitude toward losing
 a STANDARD of BEHAVIOR in a group.
weight but a negative attitude toward jogging or push-
ups exercises, the competition between these two  SUBJECTIVE NORM
attitudes almost guarantees that the behavior will not be
consistent with one of the attitudes.  the PERCEIVED STANDARD of behavior or
beliefs of what the social rules are.
2. WHEN ATTITUDES DO NOT HAVE CONTROL OVER
THE BEHAVIOR.
 For example, a person is on a strict diet, but every time
he goes to buffet, he always overeat because of good
food he can’t resist.

3. WHEN NORMS SPECIFY CERTAIN BEHAVIORS.

 The norm on how to act when bored is fairly specific like
suffering in silence.
 For example, you will not tell a person you are dating that
it was a boring date, but instead tell him that you had
fun.
 WHAT IS THE INTENTION? ATTITUDE OR
SUBJECTIVE NORM?
 Greeting a professor — even if students do not
like them.
 Giving a tip to the waiter — even if the service is
mediocre.
 Praising a friend’s new hairstyle is nice — even
when you think otherwise.
 These are examples of behaviors guided by
social norms.
 ATTITUDE will predict BEHAVIOR only when the
actions are not highly controlled by norms and
social pressures.

2. FAZIO’S THEORY OF ATTITUDE—BEHAVIOR

RELATIONSHIPS 4. FESTINGER’S COGNITIVE DISSONANCE THEORY

 This explains that attitudes are called from  Our attitudes CHANGE — because we are
MEMORY affects SOCIAL PERCEPTIONS as an motivated to MAINTAIN CONSISTENCY among
outcome will also affect such behavior. our cognitions.
 The link between attitude and behavior is  COGNITIVE DISSONANCE
STRONG when the attitude has been learned, has
direct experience and has been practiced.  refers to the tension which arises when one is
o but is not strong — just perceiving the attitude simultaneously AWARE of two INCONSISTENT
from the memory. cognitions or discrepancy between our
behaviors and attitudes.

WHAT TO CHANGE? ATTITUDE OR BEHAVIOR?

 3 BASIC OPERATIONS FOR DISSONANCE

REDUCTION:
1. Attitudes or Behavior can CHANGE so that they
are MORE CONSISTENT with each other.
2. A person can acquire NEW INFORMATION that
SUPPORTS his attitude and behavior.
3. People can decide that the INCONSISTENCY
actually does NOT matter at all.
3. THEORY OF PLANNED BEHAVIOR

 This suggests that perceived behavioral control

influences INTENTIONS independently of
attitudes and subjective norms.
 People take into account whether they are
CAPABLE of performing a behavior to formulate
their intentions.
 If they seem it is beyond their control, then people
will simply not intend to perform it.
 similar in BANDURA’S SELF-EFFICACY:
o refers to the extent to which people believe they
have the SKILLS and OPPORTUNITIES
necessary to perform action.
 Thus, perceptions of low self-efficacy might
INHIBIT people from acting the way they should.
  SELECTIVE EXPOSURE 3. DOOR-IN-THE-FACE TECHNIQUE
 tendency to seek INFORMATION and MEDIA that  The technique refers to a person who asks for a
AGREE with one’s views and to avoid dissonant VERY LARGE FAVOR.
information.  When it is turned down, the person then would ask
for a second request which is smaller favor.
 INSUFFICIENT JUSTIFICATION  The target of request is more likely to grant the
 Reduction of dissonance by INTERNALLY second request provided such a larger request is
JUSTIFYING one’s behavior when external accepted.
justification is “insufficient.”
o Experience more discomfort (dissonance)
and be more motivated to believe in what they
have done.
o Form of PUNISHMENT and REWARD.
 Note that cognitive dissonance theory focuses NOT on
the relative effectiveness of rewards and punishment
administered after the act but, rather on: 4. EVEN-A-PENNY-WILL-HELP TECHNIQUE
 WHAT INDUCES A DESIRED ACTION.  The technique that maximizes the probabilities of
WAYS IN ATTIDUNAL CHANGE AND COMPLIANCE accepting the CONTRIBUTION while leaving
UNAFFECTED the magnitude of contribution.
 The beliefs and attitudes are changed via  When a charity institution may better off asking
behavioral influence techniques. for anything at all —rather than a big amount.
 There are psychological techniques and  DONATIONS
strategies to be employed in order to develop 5. INDUCING GUILT TECHNIQUE
peoples’ favorable attitude and appropriate
behavior.  Making people feel GUILTY increases
COMPLIANCE.
1. FOOT-IN-THE-DOOR PHENOMENON  “God knows Hudas not pay.”
 “Your actions have consequences. Keep
 Tendency for people who have first agreed to a alcohol out of the hands of minors.”
SMALL request to comply later with a LARGER
request. 6.IMAGINE-THAT-YOU’RE-DOING-ME-A-FAVOR
 Following up a smaller request with an even TECHNIQUE
bigger one such that the subject complies on the  When people imagine that an event will happen,
grounds of the bond created. they come to BELIEVE more STRONGLY that the
event will actually take place.
 St. Peter
7. TOUCHING TECHNIQUE
 Touching people when making requests
INCREASES the likelihood that they will
COMPLY.
 Putting a touch on a person is an affective
technique for compliance.
2. LOW BALL TECHNIQUE 8. SUGGESTING ATTRIBUTIONS TECHNIQUE
 The moment an individual is COMMITTED to an  This is a technique using suggesting attribution
action — he or she is more likely to accept a by giving FAVORABLE EXPLANATION of the
SLIGHT INCREASE in the COST of the action. behavior.
 “I am free as my hair.”
 “Tough guys wear pink.”
 “Big girls don’t cry.”
9. MAKING-IT-A-GAME TECHNIQUE
 A technique involves turning an ACTIVITY into a
GAME.
 Educators and parents have used toys and games
as an effective way for compliance from children.
 Virtual Classroom Games
 SELF-PERCEPTION THEORY SELF-AFFIRMATION THEORY

 Assumes that OUR ACTIONS are SELF- a) People often experience a SELF-IMAGE
REVEALING: THREAT — after engaging in an undesirable
 when UNCERTAIN about our feelings behavior.
and beliefs, we look to our behavior, b) And they can compensate by AFFIRMING
much as anyone would. ANOTHER ASPECT OF THE SELF.
 Threaten people’s self-concept in one domain,
FACIAL FEEDBACK EFFECT and they will compensate either by refocusing
 The tendency of FACIAL EXPRESSIONS to or by doing good deeds in some other domain.
trigger corresponding feelings such as:
 FEAR
 ANGER
 HAPPINESS
 Our facial expression also INFLUENCE our
attitudes.

OVER-JUSTIFICATION EFFECT

 The RESULT of BRIBING PEOPLE to do what

they already like doing.
 may then see their actions as
EXTERNALLY CONTROLLED rather
than intrinsically appealing.