Attitudes

Definition
 “An attitude is the mental state of readiness, learned and
organized through experience, exerting (use ) a specific
influence on persons response to people, object and
situation with which it is related.”

 “Attitudes are learned pre dispositions towards aspect of

our environment. They may be positively or negatively
directed towards certain people, services or institutions.”
Nature

 Attitudes represent beliefs, feelings and actions

tendencies towards objects, Ideas or people.

 Attitude sustains unless something happens.

 Attitudes are organized and are core to an individual.

 All people, irrespective of their status or intelligence ,

holds attitudes.
Components of Attitude

 Affective: The feelings sentiments, moods &

emotions about some idea, person, event or object.

 Cognitive: The beliefs, opinions, knowledge or

information held by an individual.

 Behavior : The predisposition(suspect) to get on a

favorable or unfavorable evolution of something.
Formation of Attitude

Experience with
Object
Classical
Mass communication conditioning

Attitudes Operant
Economic status conditioning

Family & Peer

Neighborhood Vicarious Learning
groups
Examples
 Experience with object: If every one who held a job has been promoted
within six months, current job holders are likely to believe they will also be
promoted within six months.

 Classical Conditioning: Many ads feature young, attractive, healthy men

and woman using a product- even if it is one as uninteresting as
toothpaste.

 Operant conditioning: Reinforced verbally or non verbally.

 Vicarious Learning: Children pick up prejudices of their parents. Even if

they have never met a blind person, children whose parents say that “blind
people are incompetent” may adopt such attitudes themselves.
Functions of Attitude

 Adjustment  Ego Defensive

 Attitude

 Knowledge  Value expression

Measurement of Attitudes
 Attitude need to be measured so that they lend
themselves for scientific study.
 Techniques include: Self report, Likert Scale, Osgood’s
scale and Sociometry.
 Self Report: By long questionnaire.
 Likert Scale: Developed by Likert in 1932, Mostly subjects
to state the degree of agreeableness or disagreeableness
against the statement listed on the subject. Normally
done on a 5 point scale or 7 point scale.
 Osgood scale: It consists of pair of adjectives opposite in
meaning.
Values
 Values are evaluative statements are stable and long lasting
belief about what is important.
 Two types of values: Terminal values are desired state of
existence that we think or worth striving for. Ex. Beauty,
Equality, Comfortable life, etc., Instrumental values are
desirable modes of behavior that help us reach the objectives
of terminal values. Ex. Polite, Courage, etc.,
 Another category of values: Theoretical, Economic, Social,
Political, Religious, aesthetic values.