1. Chapter 7 - Attitudes, Beliefs, and Consistency
What Are Attitudes and Why Do People Have Them?
How Attitudes Are Formed?
Consistency
Do Attitudes Really Predict Behavior?
Beliefs and Believing
This is an overview of the topics of the chapter. Before beginning the chapter there is a slide based on the chapter introduction that can be used to stimulate classroom discussion.

2. Attitudes and Beliefs
Attitudes
Global evaluations toward some object or issue
Beliefs
Information about something; facts or opinions

3. Attitude
Attitude = one's evaluative orientation toward a person, thing, idea, etc.
Do you like Shredded Wheat?
Do you prefer lecture course or seminars?
What's your favorite Friday evening activity?
Is Seinfeld funny?

4. Three Parts of Attitudes
Cognitive
Our knowledge of the attitude target
Affective
Our feelings or beliefs toward the attitude target
Behavioral
Our intention to act toward the attitude target

5. Dual Attitudes
Different evaluations of the same target
Implicit attitude
Automatic evaluative response
Explicit attitude
Conscious evaluative response

6. Dual Attitudes
Some attitudes are not shared with others
Stigma
We may not be aware of all our own attitudes
We may unconsciously dislike something we consciously like.

7. Measuring Attitudes
Self-Report Measures
Open Ended Scales
Likert Scales
Issues with Self-Report
Reliability / Validity
Assumes you know your attitudes
Ambivalent Attitudes
Self-Report Biases

8. Non-Verbal Measures
Behavioral Measures – Overt behavior to infer attitude
Physiological Measures – Arousal and muscle action
Implicit Attitudes – Reaction time

9. Implicit Association Test (IAT)
Measures implicit attitudes
Those we are unwilling or unable to report
Attitudes about stigmatized groups
Stigma an attribute that is perceived by others as broadly negative
Technology Tip: Students can take a sample IAT test – but caution them that the results may be a bit disconcerting. Alternatively, you may wish to access this site in class to illustrate the structure of the test. (

10. Why People Have Attitudes
Attitudes help us deal with complex world
Attitudes are evaluations (like or dislike)
Initial evaluations are immediate and unconscious
Attitudes are helpful in making choices
Two Functions
Object Appraisal
Value-Expressive
Teaching Tip: Students interested in the phenomenon of immediate evaluations can be directed to Malcolm Gladwell’s book Blink, in which he describes several examples of rapid initial evaluations. (
Technology Tip: You may wish to reference the website “Rate My Professor” as an example of an additional means by which students form attitudes toward particular instructors (

11. Attitude Formation
Genetic
Affective
Cognitive
Behavioral

12. Attitude Formation - Genetic
Tesser (1993) believed that some attitudes are heritable.
Some possibilities:
Sensory
Body Chemistry
Intelligence

13. Attitude Formation - Affective
Mere-exposure effect - Zajonc (1968)
Repeated exposure increases liking for an object
Exception - If you dislike something initially, repeated exposure will not change that attitude
Mere-exposure effect the tendency for people to come to like things simply because they see or encounter them repeatedly.
Technology Tip: Check out a demonstration of the mere exposure effect. ( )
Technology Tip: Photographers have caught onto this phenomenon (mere-exposure effect and mirror image). Visit the website, “The Mere Exposure Effect: for advice on increasing portrait sales. (

14. Attitude Formation - Affective
Classical Conditioning
Can form both explicit and implicit attitudes
Develop a positive attitude toward the conditioned stimulus
Helps explain prejudiced attitudes
Negative information in the media linked to social groups
Advertisers link celebrities and products
Classical Conditioning a type of learning in which, through repeated pairings, a neutral stimulus comes to evoke a conditioned response.
Teaching Tip: To emphasize the way that classical conditioning can shape attitudes, ask students to recall the last time they were nauseous and vomiting. Then ask them to reflect on their attitudes toward whatever they ate or drank just before getting sick.

15. Attitude Formation - Affective
Operant Conditioning
Develop a positive attitude toward something being reinforced
Social Learning
Learn attitudes acceptable through observation (Bobo Dolls)
Operant conditioning (instrumental conditioning) a type of learning in which people are more likely to repeat behaviors that have been rewarded and less likely to repeat behaviors that have been punished.
Social learning (observational learning, vicarious conditioning) a type of learning in which people are more likely to imitate behaviors if they have seen others rewarded for performing them, and less likely to imitate behaviors if they have seen others punished for performing them.

16. Attitude Formation - Cognitive
Evaluation of the merits of an object
Polarization - Attitudes become more extreme as we think about them
Especially true in strong initial attitude
Evaluate evidence in a biased manner
Accept evidence that confirms attitude
Accept evidence from ingroup members
Technology Tip: A host of television and print ads are available at the site “Best Ads on TV” (

17. Attitude Formation - Behavioral
Bem’s Self-Perception Theory
At work when we don’t have a well-defined attitude
“If I said it, it must be true”
“If I ate it, I must like it”
We are making an attribution about our behavior.

18. Commonalities in theories about consistency
Specify conditions required for consistency and inconsistency
Assume inconsistency is unpleasant
Specify conditions required to restore consistency
Technology Tip: Although the text does not detail the tripartite model of attitudes, if you wish to cover this model, Eugene Borgida presents a good visual depiction (

19. Person – Other Person – Attitude Object Relationships among P-O-X
Balance Theory
P-O-X Theory
Person – Other Person – Attitude Object
Relationships among P-O-X
Unit relationships – Things that belong together
Sentiment relationships – Liking or Disliking (Attitudes)
Technology Tip: The full text of Heider’s article presenting balance theory is available at “Psych Classics” (

20. Individuals prefer balanced to unbalanced
Balance Theory
Individuals prefer balanced to unbalanced
Jim likes Sally (P + O)
Jim is a vegetarian and dislikes eating meat (P - X);
Jim believes Sally to dislike meat (O - X).
What happens when Jim realizes Sally likes to eat meat?

21. + + + - - + - - - - + + - - - + + - + + - - + + Balance Theory
balanced (consistent) psychological states + + + - - + - - - - + +
imbalanced (inconsistent) psychological states - - - + + - + + - - + +

22. When we are balance, there is not need to change.
Balance Theory
When we are balance, there is not need to change.
“I don't like John.
John has a dog.
I don't like the dog either.”
When we are unbalanced, we are motivated to change
"I love my child.
She made this ashtray.
I hate the ashtray."

23. Cognitive Dissonance Theory
Cognitive dissonance refers to unpleasant state when attitude and behavior are inconsistent
If there is an inconsistency between thoughts, you will feel an unpleasant state of arousal (i.e., cognitive dissonance) as a result.
Causes people to rationalize their behavior and bring their attitude into line with actions
Festinger & Carlson (1959)
Technology Tip: The full text of Festinger can Carlson’s classic article is available at “Psych Classics” (

24. Cognitive Dissonance Theory
Festinger & Carlson (1959)
Stage 1
First, participants were asked to twist wooden pegs placed in a board for 30 minutes.
Second, participants were asked to put spools of thread on to pegs and take them off again for 30 minutes.
Technology Tip: The full text of Festinger can Carlson’s classic article is available at “Psych Classics” (

25. Cognitive Dissonance Theory
Festinger & Carlsmith (1959)
Stage 2
Participants were told that to test the effects of motivation in this study tell the next participant that the study was enjoyable and fun.
Two experimental groups.
Group A paid $1.00 for doing the “briefing”.
Group B paid $20.00 for doing the “briefing”.
Then, after they talked to the next participant, the participants were asked how they felt about the study.
Technology Tip: The full text of Festinger can Carlson’s classic article is available at “Psych Classics” (

26. Festinger & Carlsmith (1959)
Results
Step 1
Step 2
Payment
Step 3
Evaluation of
Task enjoyment
All participants do the boring task, and then were asked to tell next participants about task.
Group A, Lie
Paid $1.00
23.5
Group B,Lie
Paid $20.00
9.8
Group C, No lie
No pay
5.9

27. Traditional models of decision making: Operant Conditioning
Choices should be driven by future consequences,
not past expenditures
Operant Conditioning suggest the bigger the reinforcer, the more likely someone is to change their Attitude.
Cognitive Dissonance theory/research shows that Attitudes are changed more when reinforcer is less.

28. Cognitive Dissonance Theory
Effort Justification
Aronson & Mills, 1959
People seek to justify and rationalize any suffering or effort they have made
Discussion Tip: After describing the study but before revealing the results, ask students to project the results as predicted by operant conditioning. Then reveal the actual results, and explain how such results resolve dissonance.
Technology Tip: An accessible discussion of cognitive dissonance and real-life applications (including cult examples) are available at the “Skeptics Dictionary” (

29. Effort Justification Initiation rites: Aronson & Mills (1959)
Three screening conditions
Control (e.g. chair, table, sad, book)
Mild (e.g. prostitute, virgin)
Extreme (obscene words--sorry, I can’t put these up!)
All participants then listen to sample tape of discussion group
Discussion is horribly boring! (pre-tested)
Dependent variable: expressed liking for the discussion group and desire to join

30. Example
You and a companion plan to go skiing at a resort. You each have paid 100 dollars for lift tickets and rental. When you arrive, the conditions are horrible—it’s cold, icy, and even the best lifts are not operating because of the wind. In addition, you both feel lousy physically and out of sorts psychologically.
Your companion turns to you and says, “It’s too bad that the money is not refundable, we’d have a much better time back home, relaxing in front of the fire. But I can’t afford to waste 100 dollars.”
You agree. But you also both agree that it’s unlikely that you will have a better time struggling with the bad conditions on the slopes, compared to being inside.
What do you do? Stay and ski, or go home?

31. Better day at home (minus 100 dollars)
Paid 100 dollars for tickets and equipment (decrease in net assets by $100)
Give up and go home
Decision?
Stay and ski
Staying at home feels aversive, because of the sense that you have “wasted” the 100 dollars. However, the past expenditure is irrelevant to your decision, because it is a constant in both cases.
Better day at home (minus 100 dollars)
Lousy day skiing (minus 100 dollars)

32. Cognitive Dissonance Theory
While people have desire to be consistent in their own private mind, they have stronger desire to be viewed consistent by others
Self-presentation plays a role in cognitive dissonance

33. Consistency
Drive for consistency
Rooted in our biology
Strengthened by learning and socialization
Consistency involves both automatic and conscious parts of the mind

34. Do Attitudes Really Predict Behavior?

35. Attacking Attitudes
Wicker (1969) argued against Allport and suggested we abandon the study of Attitudes.
Review of attitude-behavior studies (approx 50 studies)
Average correlation [r] = .30
% of variance in behavior explained = 9% (r2)
Link between attitudes and behavior is weak.
A – B Problem
Inconsistency between attitude (A) and behavior (B)
Technology Tip: An overview of research on the attitude-behavior relationship, and how it has changed over time, is available from Eugene Borgida (

36. When do Attitudes predict behavior?
Predictions of behavior based on attitudes is best when
Measures of attitude are very specific
Behaviors are aggregated over time and situations (not one situation)
Attitudes are consciously prominent and influence thought regarding the choice (priming)
Attitudes are easily accessible
Technology Tip: A rather bizarre example of the failure of attitudes to predict behavior comes from the sketch comedy group Olde English. They first ask individuals how much money it would take for them to strangle a puppy. They then approach the individuals with a puppy and a blank check, but all refuse to comply. Preview this film before deciding whether to show it in your class (

37. What else influences Behavior
Personality traits
Ability
Motivation
Attitude
Habit
Needs
Social pressure
Other attitudes
Behavior 37

38. Self-monitoring (Snyder & Swann, 1976)
Examples
Personality
Self-monitoring (Snyder & Swann, 1976)
Private self-consciousness (Scheier et al., 1978)
Need for cognition (Cacioppo et al., 1986) 38

39. Self-monitoring (Snyder, 1974)
Concern for social appropriateness
Sensitive to self-presentation of others
Used as guidelines for monitoring own self-presentation
Two components of self-monitoring
Interest in social information
Ability to control self-presentation

40. Self-monitoring and attitude-behavior correlations
High self-monitors have lower attitude-behavior correlations
Their behavior is less reflective of their actual attitudes; more in line with what they think is socially appropriate