Attitude Formation Origins of Attitudes

[Pages:8]SocialPsychology

AttitudeFormation ? attitudesaredefinedasenduringsystemsofbeliefsthatcanbeexaminedonthreedifferentlevels:

? cognitive(howwethinkorreasonthroughanattitude) ? emotional(howwefeelregardinganattitude) ? behavioral(howweactonanattitude)

OriginsofAttitudes ? researchhasindicatedthereareseveralwaysinwhichweacquireattitudes ? oneofourearliestagentsofattitudeformationareourparents,laterfollowedbyourpeersand

themedia ? fourmajorsourcesofattitudeformationare:

? classicalconditioning:associatingbehaviorsandattitudesas"good"or"bad"(i.e.it'sgoodto tellthetruth,it'sbadtosteal)

? operantconditioning:beingrewardedorpunishedforbehaviorandattitudes(i.e.being praisedfortellingthetruthorbeingpunishedforstealingsomething)

? cognitiveappraisals:weighinglogicalargumentsindeterminingyourattitude ? observationallearning:learningattitudesthroughpeerbehaviorandthemedia

AttitudesandPersuasion ? mereexposureeffectthemoresomeoneisexposedtoanattitude,themorethatpersonwilllikeit (e.g.buyingthenamebranditembecauseyou'veseenlotsofcommercialsforit) ? centralroutepersuasion--deeplyprocessingamessage'scontent(e.g.whydoyoulikethis particularproduct) ? peripheralroutepersuasion--dealswithotheraspectsratherthanthecontent(e.g.likingthe spokespersonforaproduct)

Persuasion ? persuasionisanattempttochangeaperson'sattitudes ? researchhasindicatedthereareseveralkeycomponentsthatmakemessagesmorepersuasive,

thepersuasivecommunicatorandthepersuadedaudience.

PersuasiveMessage ? thepersuasivemessagehasseveralvariables:

? familiarity:messagesaremorepersuasiveifwearefamiliarwiththeproductorinformation ? repetition:themoreamessageisrepeated(especiallyifitiscomplex),themorepersuasiveit

is ? twosidedarguments:bothsidestoanargumentarepresented ? emotionalappeals:commercials,especially,aremorepersuasiveiftheyappealtotheemotions ? argumentsthatruncountertothecommunicator'sinterests:messagesthatseemtogoagainst

theinterestsofthepersonspeakingtendtobemorepersuasive

PersuasiveCommunicator ? thepersuasivecommunicatorstendsto:

? showexpertise ? betrustworthy ? beattractive ? besimilartotheaudience ? comefromhealthprofessions ? researchhasindicatedthatwhenfoodandmusicareaddedtomessages,theirpersuasiveness increases.

PersuadedAudience ? thepersuadedaudiencetendstohavetwocharacteristics:

? lowself-esteem:lowsenseofself-worth ? highsocialanxiety:ahighneedtofitintosociety

ComplianceStrategies ? footinthedooreffect--aftergettingsomeonetoagreetoasmallrequestyoufollowupwitha

largerrequest ? footinthefaceeffect--afterhavingsomeonedenyalargerequest,youfollowupwithasmaller

request ? normsofreciprocity--afterdoingsomethingniceforsomeone,youexpectthemtoreciprocate

LeonFestinger:CognitiveDissonance ? thetheoryofcognitivedissonanceisproposedbyLeonFestinger ? Festingerstatesthatwhenwehavetwocontradictorybeliefswefeelanxiety ? forexample,weknowhowtofixourcarbutwebringittoamechanictofix--wewillattemptto

reduceouranxiety,calleddissonancereduction,bycomingupwithareasonforouractions ? wemightjustifythemechanicworkingonourcarbecausewe"don'thavethepropertools"or

"don'thavethetimetofixit" ? cognitivedissonancealsooccurswhenourthoughtsandbehaviorsareinconsistent

? apersonknowssmokingcigarettesisbadforhishealthbutsmokesthemanyway;hemay rationalizethisbysaying"he'snotsmokingthatmuch"or"evidenceiscontradictoryonthe effectsofsmokingonhealth"

? cognitivedissonancealsooperatesontheideathat"yougetwhatyoupayfor" ? thethinkingthatsomethingthatcostsmoremustbeofhigherqualityexplainsthis ? theideabehindthisisthemoreyoumustgiveupforsomething(money)themorevaluableit mustbe(higherquality)

? patronsatamoviematineewillmorelikelyratethemovieasmoderatelyentertainingwhereas patronsataneveningperformancewillrateitsignificantlyhigherorlowerbecausethey'vepaid moreforthemovie BalanceTheory

? balancetheoryisalsousedtoexplainourattitudesandanxietyrelatedtopeopleweknow.There arethreepossiblestatesinbalancetheory: ? balance:whensomeonewelikeholdsthesameattitudesaswedo ? imbalance:whensomeonewelikeholdsacontradictoryattitudetoours ? nonbalance:whensomeonewedon'tlikeholdsacontradictoryattitudetoours

InGroup/OutGroupDynamics

? Ingroupandoutgroupdynamicsaretiedtodiscrimination ? Peopletendtoseemembersoftheirowngroup(ingroup)asmorediversethanmembersofother

groups(outgroup) ? Outgrouphomogeneity--outgroupmembersareseenasessentiallyallthesame ? Ingroupbias--peopleprefermembersoftheirowngroup;theyseethemselvesasbasicallygood

people

InterpersonalAttraction ? studiesconductedamongcollegestudentshaveindicatedthatthenumberonethingmaleslook

forinalong-terminterpersonalrelationshipislooks ? thenumberonethingfemaleslookforispersonality ? proximity,orthephysicalclosenessofonepersontoanother,isthemostimportantcharacteristic,

accordingtoresearch

OtherFactorsinAttraction ? thereareseveralotherfactorsinvolvedininterpersonalattraction:

? attitudinalsimilarity:researchsuggestswearemoreattractedtopeoplewhosharethesame attitudesaswedo

? the"RomeoandJuliet"effect:earlyinarelationship,parentaldisapprovalcanactuallyintensify feelingsofinterpersonalattraction

? propinquity:attractionislikelytodevelopbetweenpeopleincloseproximitybecausetheywill seemoreoftheotherperson'sinnerqualities

? playinghardtoget:playinghardtogetisactuallyseenasanundesirableattitude;devotional behavior,orchannelingattentiontoonlyoneperson,isseenasmostdesirable BodyLanguage

? bodylanguagehasbeenstudiedwithvaryingresults ? mostresearchindicatesthattheeyescanexpresswhensomeoneispayingattentionorlying ? crossedarmsandlegscanbesignsofdefensiveness ? rapportingistheunconsciousactofmirroringthebodypostureofsomeoneyou'retalkingto;if

youcrossyourarms,thepersontalkingtoyoumaydothesamething

PersonalSpace ? personalspaceistheimaginaryareawekeeparoundourselvestobecomfortableinvaryingsocial

situations ? therearefourlevelstopersonalspace:

? intimatedistance:contactto18inches,thespacewereserveforintimaciesandlovedones ? personaldistance:18inchesto4feet,thespacewehavearoundusinmostsocialsettingsat

school(e.g.thedistancebetweenastudentandthestudentsittingnexttothem) ? socialdistance:4to7feet,thespacewehavearounduswhenwe'reoutinpublicplaces,like

themall ? publicdistance:7feetandgreater,thespacebetweenusandperformersatpublicevents(e.g.

concerts,lectures) ? researchhadindicatedtherearebothculturalandgenderdifferencesintheparametersof

personalspace

AttributionTheory ? dispositional(orperson)attribution--attributingactionstopersonalfactors ? situationalattribution--attributingactionstoexternalorenvironmentalfactors ? stableattribution--conditionsthatarealwayspresent ? unstableattribution--conditionsthatarenotstableandmaybeoccasionalorintermittent ? thesemaybecombined:

? situationstable--aclassisconsideredhard ? personunstable--aclassmatemayhavegottenagoodgradeonanexambecausetheystudied

extrahardforit

? attributiontheoryexamineshowweattributethesourceofouractions ? defensiveattributionisthetendencytoattributeoursuccessestoourownefforts (dispositional)andourfailurestoexternalfactors(situational) ? fundamentalattributionerroristhetendencyofpeopletooveremphasizepersonalcausesfor otherpeople'sbehavior(dispositional)andunderemphasizepersonalcausesfortheirown behavior(dispositional) ? fundamentalattributionerrorislesslikelytooccurincollectivistculturesthaninindividualist cultures AdditionalFactorsinAttributionTheory

? falseconsensuseffectthetendencytooverestimatethenumberofpeoplewhoagreewithyou ? selfservingbias--thetendencytotakemorecreditforgoodresultsthanbadresults

? justworldbias--thetendencytobelievethatgoodthingshappentogoodpeopleandbadthings happentobadpeople ? theassumptionisthatbadthingshappeningtopeoplearedeservedbecausetheymustbebad people HaroldKelley

? believespeoplemakeattributionsbasedonthreekindsofinformation ? consistency--howanindividualactsinthesamesituationovertime

? importantindeterminingwhethertomakeastableorunstableattribution ? distinctiveness--howthesituationtheindividualisplacedinisdifferentfrommorecommon

situations ? consensus--howsimilarotherswouldrespondinthesamesituation

? importantindeterminingwhethertomakeadispositionalorsituationalattribution

AttributionandPrejudice ? basedonattributiontheory,individualsmaydeveloppreconceivedideasaboutsomeoneelse ? thismayaffectthewaytheyvieworacttowardtheotherperson ? theseexpectationsmaycauseindividualstochangethewaytheyact ? theselffulfillingprophesyisthischangeinbehaviorduetotheinfluenceofhowothersviewthe

individual

Stereotypes ? stereotypesaredefinedasacollectionofideassomeonehasaboutanotherindividualorgroup

thatinfluenceshowtheyinteractwiththem ? stereotypescanbebothpositiveandnegative ? cognitivepsychologistsbelievestereotypesareschematawedevelopregardinggroups

PrejudiceandDiscrimination ? prejudiceisdefinedasanunwarranted,usuallynegativeattitudetowardagroup ? stereotypingcanleadtoprejudice ? ethnocentrism--thebeliefthatone'sowncultureisbetterthanothers ? discrimination--actingonone'sprejudice ? individualsseetheirowngroup(in-group)asbeingmorediversethanothergroups(out-groups)- -calledoutgrouphomogeneity ? individualswillprefermembersoftheirowngroupsthanthoseofothergroups--calledingroup bias ? individualsmayexercisetwodifferenttypesofaggressivebehaviorsinresponsetoprejudiceand discrimination ? instrumentalaggression--directedtosecuresomepurposeorparticularend ? hostileaggression--hasnotclearobjective ? therearevarioustheoriesabouttheoriginsofaggression: ? Freud--linkedtothethanatos ? Sociobiologists--anadaptationtocertaincircumstances ? Frustrationaggressiontheory--aresponsetoincreasedfrustration ? Sociallearning--exposuretoaggressionfostersaggression

ReducingPrejudiceandDiscrimination ? contacttheorycontactbetweenin-groupsandout-groupswillinevitablyreduceanimosity ? typicallybothgroupsworkonacommongoalthathascommonbenefitstoall--calleda subordinategoal ? thisisthetheorybehindmostcooperativelearningactivitiesinschoolsandbusinesses

SolomonAsch:Conformity ? thetwolandmarkstudiesonconformityandobediencewereconductedbyAschandMilgram,

respectively. ? conformityisdefinedasvoluntarilyyieldingtosocialnorms,evenattheexpenseofone'sown

preferences ? SolomonAschconductedanexperimentinwhichsubjectswereaskedtocomparethelengthsof

lines ? confederates,orsubjectsinontheexperiment,purposelygavewronganswerstoseeifthetest

subjectswouldconform

? severalvariablesthatwouldincreasethelikelihoodthatthesubjectswouldconformwerefound: ? subjectswouldconformuptotheadditionoffourconfederates;afterthattheincidenceof conformitystayedaboutthesame ? theserialposition(whentheywereaskedtheiranswer)mattered,theclosertothebeginning ofthegroupwouldyieldlessconformitythanbeingaskedtowardtheendofthegroup ? ifconfederateswereunanimousintheiranswers,moreconformitywouldtakeplace;ifone confederateprovidedadifferentanswer,morenonconformitywouldtakeplace ? themoreambiguouswastaskwas,themorelikelyconformitywouldtakeplace ? ifthesubjecthaslowself-esteemorfeltnotascompetentasothersinthegroup,more conformitywouldtakeplace StanleyMilgram:ObediencetoAuthority

? obedienceisdefinedasachangeinbehaviorinresponsetoacommandfromanotherperson, typicallyanauthorityfigure

? StanleyMilgramconductedanexperimenttotestasubject'slikelihoodtoobeyanauthorityfigure ? Milgramaskedstudentsdodeliverelectricshockstosubjectswhoansweredincorrectlyona

seriesofquestions ? theywereflipswitchesonamechanicalboxthatindicatedeachsubsequentswitchdelivereda

slightlyhighershock ? thelastfewswitchesindicatedthatthevoltagewassevere ? hefoundthat65%ofthesubjectswouldobeyhisrequeststoshockthesubjectsintheotherroom

(who,ofcourse,weinontheexperimentasconfederatesandwerenotgettingshocked)

? severalvariableswereidentifiedbeforeMilgramwasforcedtoshutdownthishighly controversialexperiment

? wearemorelikelytoobeywhen ? weperceivethefigurerequestingweobeyasanauthority ? wearefarremovedfromthepersonweareinflictingpainon(e.g.it'seasiertobreakupwith someoneoverthephone) ? theactissharedbyothers(diffusionofresponsibility) ? theauthorityfigureispresent(e.g.whenMr.Sisman'scomesouttochecktoseeifpeople outsideareworking) GroupBehavior

? socialfacilitationhasbeenseeningroupbehavior ? wetendtospeedupouractionswhenothersarepresent ? runnerstendtorunfasteringroupsthanindividually ? animalsrunninginpacksthentorunfasterthanindividually

? socialloafingoccurswhenthepresenceofothersslowsdownouractions ? evaluationapprehensionisthefearthatothersareevaluatingourbehaviors

? themostcommoninstanceofthisisfearofpublicspeakingbecauseothersarefocusingonthe mistakesandmannerismswemakeratherthanthecontentofourspeech

? groupthinkthetendencyofgroupstomakebaddecisionsbecauseindividualmembersaresilent abouttheirreservations

? highly-cohesivegroupsmakingriskydecisionsaremostsusceptibletothis ? ingroupdecisionmaking,polarizationtendstooccur

? thismeansthatgroupswilltendtoeithermakeextremelycautiousorextremelyrisky decisions,whereasindividualsactingalonewilltendtobemuchmoreconservativeintheir decisionmaking

? morelikelythannot,groupswilltendtopursuetheriskiercourse;thisiscalledriskyshift ? thereasonthisoccursiscalleddiffusionofresponsibility,ortheideathatresponsibilityis

sharedbythegroupratherthanjustoneindividual ? ingroups,individualscangetsocaughtupinthe"groupmentality"thattheycanloseasenseof

selfandpersonalresponsibility;thisiscalleddeindividuation ? highly-cohesivegroupsmakingriskydecisionsaremostsusceptibletothis

? PhilipZimbardofamousprisonexperimentdealtwithdeindividuationbutalsotheeffectsofroles andthesituation

? thestudywasconductedatStanfordUniversity--studentsrole-playedguardsorprisoners ? theexperimenthadtobeendedearlybecauseofthecrueltreatmentbytheguards

LeadershipStyles ? therearebasicallythreetypesofleadershipstyle:

? autocraticisastyleinwhichthegroupleadermakesallthedecisions ? democraticisastyleinwhichmembersofthegroupprovideinputtotheleaderinmaking

decisions,oftenbasedonmajorityvote ? laissezfaireisastyleinwhichthegroupisallowedtopursuewhatevercourseitwants;there

isageneralabsenceofautocraticordemocraticleadership

TypesofPower ? leadersinagroupcanwieldoneormoreoffivetypesofpower:

? expertpoweroccurswhentheleaderisperceivedasanexpertinthefield ? legitimatepoweroccurswhentheleaderhasonofficialpositionthatgiveshimorher

statutoryorperceivepower ? referentpoweroccurswhenaleaderiswell-likedbythegroup ? rewardpoweroccurswhentheleadercanbestowbenefitsorrewardstogroupmembers ? coercivepoweroccurswhentheleadercanpunishgroupmembers

AltruisticBehavior ? the1964rapeandmurderofKittyGenovese,wherenearly40peoplewitnessedwhatwas happeningyetnoonecalledthepolice,haspromptedsocialpsychologiststounderstandthe parametersofhelpingbehavior ? witnessesoftheGenovesekillinginNewYorksaidtheydidn'tresponsebecause: ? theythoughtsomeoneelsewouldgetinvolved ? theydidn'twanttogetinvolved

ProsocialBehavior:TheHelper ? researchindicatesthefollowingregardinghelpingbehavior: ? thehelper:wetypicallyhelpwhen... ? weareinagoodmood ? wehaveempathyforthevictim ? weareNOThighlymasculine(highlymasculinehelpersfearpotentialembarrassmentifthey can'tsuccessfullyhelp) ? wefeelassenseofpersonalresponsibility ? wepossessthebehavioralcompetencytohelp

? thevictim:Individualsaremorelikelytobehelpediftheyare... ? female ? attractive ? alone ? similartothehelper

? situationaldeterminants:Wearemorelikelytohelpif...

? wefullyunderstandwhatweareseeing ? therearenootherbystandersaround ? weareacquaintedwiththevictim ? theenvironmentisfamiliartothehelper

EnvironmentalPsychology ? variousstudiesontheeffectsofnoisehavebeenconductedonchildrenwholiveinthelanding patternsofmajorairportsandonthelowerlevelsoftenementhousingalongbusystreetsincities ? resultsindicatethatthesechildrensufferfrom: ? morestress ? morehearingloss ? deficitsinlearningandmemoryability ? studiesdoneatloudclubsanddiscoshaveshownthatwhennoiselevelsexceed80decibels, feelingsofinterpersonalattractionstarttodecreaseandcoupleincreasethespacebetweenthem

JohnCalhoun:DensityandCrowding ? JohnCalhounisknownbestforhisstudiesondensityandcrowding ? hecreateda"ratuniverse"inwhichratswereallowedtoreproduceuntiltheircontainer,or "universe"becamecrowded ? henotedseveralformsofaberrantbehavior: ? mortalityraterose ? thefamilystructurebrokedown ? packsofdelinquentmaleratswouldterrorizeothersinthecontainer CrowdinginHumanEnvironments ? studiesofdensityandcrowdinghavealsobeenconductedinhumanenvironments ? prisonersatcrowdedprisonsshowhigherbloodpressure,ahighermortalityrateandmore mentaldisorders ? studentsincrowdedcollegedormitoriesshowlesssatisfactionwiththeirroommateandtendto withdrawmorefromsocialinteraction ? thetriplingeffecthasalsobeenobservedinsomedormroomsituations;whenthreestudents roomtogether,afriendshipcandevelopbetweentwoofthemandtheirthirdwillfeelostracized orleftout ? researchoncitydwellershasfoundthattheytendtoshakehandsless,theydonothelpstrangers andtheytendtoplanahead,especiallywhenwalking,toavoidpotentialdangers

Industrial/OrganizationalPsychology ? EltonMayoconductedthefirstexperimentsduringthe1920stodetermineifincreasingthe

lightingintheWesternElectricHawthorneplantwouldincreaseproductivity ? resultsindicatedanychangesinthelighting,highorlow,increasedproductivity,butnot

becauseofthelighting ? workersknewtheywerebeingobservedandincreasedtheirproductivityasaresultofbeing

watched ? theHawthorneeffectistheprinciplethatpeoplewillaltertheirbehaviorbecauseofresearchers'

attentionandnotnecessarilybecauseofanytreatmentcondition

? furtherresearchhasadvancedtheunderstandingofworkorganizations.Resultsofstudieshave found: ? workerswhoemployavarietyofskillsonthejobaremorelikelytoviewtheirjobsas meaningful,showincreasedmotivationandhavemoresatisfactionwiththeirjob ? workerswhoaremoreautonomousperceivetheirjobsasentailingmoreresponsibilityand producehigherqualitywork ? small,cohesiveworkgroupsaremoreproductivethanlarge,impersonalones--employers havemovedfromassemblyline ? workerstoautonomousworkgroupswhoproduceanentireunit--thishasledtogreater workersatisfaction,higher-qualityoutputanddecreasedabsenteeism

? researchoncommunicationandresponsibilityhavefound: ? centralizedcommunicationschemesworkbetterinsolvingsimpleproblemswhilesolving complexproblemsrequireslesscentralizationwithmembersfreelycommunicatingamong themselves ? assigningkeydecisionstoworkgroupsimprovessatisfactionwiththeoutcomeandtheir membershipinthegroup ? increasingthenumberofpeoplewhoparticipateindecisionmakingdoesnotleadto increasedproductivity

APCheck APstudentsinpsychologyshouldbeabletodothefollowing: ? Applyattributiontheorytoexplainmotives(e.g.fundamentalattributionerror,self-servingbias). ? Describethestructureandfunctionofdifferentkindsofgroupbehavior(e.g.deindividuation,

grouppolarization). ? Explainhowindividualsrespondtoexpectationsofothers,includinggroupthink,conformity,and

obediencetoauthority. ? Discussattitudesandhowtheychange(e.g.centralroutetopersuasion). ? Predicttheimpactofthepresenceofothersonindividualbehavior(e.g.bystandereffect,social

facilitation). ? Describeprocessesthatcontributetodifferentialtreatmentofgroupmembers(e.g.in-group/out-

groupdynamics,ethnocentrism,prejudice). ? Articulatetheimpactofsocialandculturalcategories(e.g.gender,race,ethnicity)onselfconcept

andrelationswithothers(pp.743748). ? Anticipatetheimpactofbehavioronaselffulfillingprophecy. ? Describethevariablesthatcontributetoaltruism,aggression,andattraction. ? Discussattitudeformationandchange,includingpersuasionstrategiesandcognitivedissonance. ? Identifyimportantfiguresinsocialpsychology(e.g.SolomonAsch,LeonFestinger,Stanley

Milgram,PhilipZimbardo.

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