E. Definition of the Terms
2. Attitudes
a. The Nature Attitudes
Attitudes are basically statements about how much we like or dislike different things. It represents preferences and evaluations of a wide range of attitudes toward "things." Information informs attitudes.
The majority of theories or concepts begin with a broad statement of universal applicability.
Attitudes are defined by the fact that they offer a judgment about something (Insko & Schopler, 1972; Petty and Cacioppo, 1981). Terms like liking-disliking, pro-anti, favoring-not favoring, and positive-negative are used to express opinions. They are the emotions elicited by any attitude toward a particular item. Attitudes can be directed at entities, people, or abstract concepts. Furthermore, anything that elicits evaluative feelings might be considered an object of attitudes.
It distinguishes "attitudes" from "beliefs" or "opinions" by limiting the term "attitudes" to evaluations. Beliefs are thoughts or cognitions concerning the properties of objects. The attributes are linked to the
objects (Fishbein & Ajzen, 1975). The likelihood of a belief or an opinion being true is measured. Attitudes are significant because they are assumed to guide behavior.
b. Attitude Theories 1) Learning Theories
One of the first researchers to suggest that learning principles may be used to attitudes was Doob (1947). In the same manner that classical and instrumental conditioning concepts have been used to overt behavior, he claimed that they could be used to explain the formation and modification of attitudes. Consider the effects of classical conditioning on a number of instances. An unconditional stimulus is paired with a neutral stimulus. The previously neutral stimulus may start to evoke a response similar to that of an unconditioned stimulus over time. Positive assessments may be given to objects, persons, or events linked with pleasurable experiences, whereas negative evaluations may be given to those associated with bad experiences (Morgan et al. 1987).
Instrumental conditioning is obviously relevant to attitude formation and modification, as it enacts the reward effects of any behavior by its subsequent enactment. It should go without saying that instrumental conditioning will be crucial in social influence scenarios involving other people. The attitudes one expresses are
frequently used to determine membership and acceptance in various groups.
2) Consistency Theories a) Balance Theory
The interaction between a person and two attitude objects is the subject of balance theory. Attitudes that are either favorable (good, liking, or positive) or unfavorable (bad, disliking, or negative) connect the three parts. The relationships between the elements can create a balanced or imbalanced framework. The primary tenet of balance theory is that one's attitude structures have a tendency to maintain or restore balance. Unbalanced structures are unsettling or unpleasant in some way. Balance theory does not promise that an imbalance will always be corrected; rather, it predicts that there will be a tendency toward balance and that unbalanced structures will cause tension and discomfort.
b) Cognitive Dissonance
Leon Festinger published his cognitive dissonance hypothesis in 1957. Individuals are considered to strive for harmony (consonance) among the elements in their cognitive, or thought, systems, according to cognitive dissonance theory. The act of causing dissonance, like the act of causing imbalance, is understood to be distressing and to inspire the person to restore consonance. The occurrence of dissonance, on the other hand, can
occur under a broader range of circumstances than the occurrence of imbalance. Any two connected cognitive aspects that do not fit together because they contradict general logic or the person's expectations, according to Festinger, are discordant. A person can lessen dissonance in one of two ways: by modifying one of the cognitive elements or by adding a new cognitive factor.
One of the draws of dissonance theory, according to Festinger, was that it produced predictions that were not evident or in line with conventional opinion. One experiment was done in the field of counter-attitudinal role-playing. Situations in which people express public opinions that are diametrically opposed to their private attitudes are known as counter attitudinal role playing.
The theory of dissonance has a wide range of applications.
One example is circumstances in which people have exerted varying degrees of effort in order to attain the same result. Consider those who go through initiation procedures in order to join an organization that ends up being a disappointment.
3) Cognitive-Response Approaches
The theories described have attempted to explain how the recipient of a message responds to new information in order to account for attitude formation or change. The new knowledge is significant because it either mediates learning effects or introduces discrepancies that the recipient must address. These theories are not
contradicted by cognitive response techniques. Instead, they concentrate on the notion that the recipient does more than respond to external information; they also produce thoughts about it. The role of a person's cognitive organization in affecting how information is interpreted, recalled, and retrieved is also emphasized in cognitive response techniques.
c. The Content of Attitudes
Attitudes are summaries of emotive, cognitive, and behavioral judgments of an object (Haddock; Maio, (2009)). Attitudes comprise affective, behavioral and cognitive response (Bohner & Wanke, 2014).
An attitude object coupled with feelings or emotions is referred to as the affective component of attitudes. Affective reactions are influenced by attitudes in a variety of ways. Affective reactions that are induced in the individual after exposure to the attitude object are a primary method in which feelings influence attitudes.
A specific object connected with beliefs, thoughts, and qualities is referred to as the cognitive component of attitudes. A person's attitudes may be primarily influenced by the positive and negative characteristics of attitudes objects. Cognition in the form of beliefs, according to which attitudes are generated from more basic cognitions concerning attitude objects.
An attitude object with respect to past activities is referred to as the behavioral component of attitudes. Strongly held opinions can also be
influenced by behavior, although in a different way. People can modify their attitudes, according to Festinger (1954) in Haddock and Maio (2009), in order to be consistent with their activities.