Attitude

Attitude vs. Belief  Belief is a thought (cognition) about something Raw fish is bad Raw fish is bad Exercise is important Exercise is important  Attitude adds two components: ABCs Affective: evaluation, emotion Affective: evaluation, emotion Behavioral: tendency to take action Behavioral: tendency to take action Cognitive: belief or thoughts Cognitive: belief or thoughts

Components  Affective: I hate raw fish and sushi I hate raw fish and sushi I enjoy exercise I enjoy exercise  Behavioral I won’t eat sushi I won’t eat sushi I will exercise regularly I will exercise regularly  Cognitive Raw fish is bad Raw fish is bad Exercise is good Exercise is good

Consistency  We always want our ABCs to agree  What if we don’t have an attitude? Behavior will shape our attitude Behavior will shape our attitude  What if our ABCs are inconsistent? Caveats Caveats

Attitudes  Explicit attitude  Implicit attitude Involuntary, uncontrollable, often unconscious Involuntary, uncontrollable, often unconscious IAT IAT

Attitudes toward groups  Prejudice Affective component Affective component Hostile or negative attitude toward people just because they are a group member Hostile or negative attitude toward people just because they are a group member  Stereotypes Cognitive component Cognitive component Generalization in which identical characteristics are assigned to all members Generalization in which identical characteristics are assigned to all members  Discrimination Behavioral component Behavioral component Unjustified negative or harmful action toward a group member because of their membership Unjustified negative or harmful action toward a group member because of their membership

Prejudice in the classroom  Jane Elliott Prejudice can be taught Prejudice can be taught Told students blue-eyed people were better than brown-eyed people Told students blue-eyed people were better than brown-eyed people Brown-eyed children had to wear collars and sit in the back of class Brown-eyed children had to wear collars and sit in the back of class Over the course of one day: brown eyed children became self-conscious, depressed, and demoralized Over the course of one day: brown eyed children became self-conscious, depressed, and demoralized Next day: Elliott switched the stereotypes about eye- color (brown=good) Next day: Elliott switched the stereotypes about eye- color (brown=good) Brown-eyed kids exacted their revenge Brown-eyed kids exacted their revenge

Why are stereotypes maintained?  Illusory correlation See correlations where they don’t exist See correlations where they don’t exist Remember confirmatory examples more Remember confirmatory examples more Example: Cheerleaders are outgoing Example: Cheerleaders are outgoing  Out-group homogeneity effect Us vs. them Us vs. them “All ______ are alike” “All ______ are alike”  In-group bias Positive feelings for people who are part of our in- group Positive feelings for people who are part of our in- group Alumni, state residency Alumni, state residency

Fundamental Attribution Error  Interpret behavior as a characteristic of the individual rather than the situation  Do not take into account the situation Person unemployed is a bad worker Person unemployed is a bad worker Bush caused war Bush caused war Jeopardy player is really smart Jeopardy player is really smart  Maintain stereotypes: Attribute confirmatory examples to the individual Attribute confirmatory examples to the individual Ignore/attribute to the situation examples which don’t fit or stereotype Ignore/attribute to the situation examples which don’t fit or stereotype

Persuasion  Yale Attitude Change Hovland, 1953 Hovland, 1953 The effectiveness of communication depends on who says what to whom. The effectiveness of communication depends on who says what to whom. Who: The persuader or source Who: The persuader or source Credibility (expertise, knowledge)Credibility (expertise, knowledge) AttractivenessAttractiveness

Persuasion What: The message What: The message One- vs. two-sided messagesOne- vs. two-sided messages Blatantly persuasiveBlatantly persuasive Primacy vs. recencyPrimacy vs. recency Depends on when decision is made Depends on when decision is made Fear arousingFear arousing To whom: The recipient To whom: The recipient DistractionDistraction IntelligenceIntelligence AgeAge

Persuasive techniques  Foot in the door  Door in the face  Reciprocity—create an obligation  Low-ball—obtain commitment then up the price  Sweeten the deal  Exclusivity  Prestige

Heider’s Balance Theory  We want to maintain consistency among our attitudes Prefer to agree with someone I like Prefer to agree with someone I like Disagree with someone I dislike Disagree with someone I dislike + ++ Object SelfOther -- + Object SelfOther

Balance Theory  What if my attitudes are imbalanced? Change beliefs about the object Change beliefs about the object Change beliefs about the person Change beliefs about the person Change whichever is easierChange whichever is easier Object SelfOther Object SelfOther