Chapter 6 Flashcards
Attitude
a positive, negative or mixed reaction to a person.
Four possible reaction to attitude objects
our attitudes can be positive, negative, ambivalent, or indifferent.
Two ways attitudes reveal things about individuals
1) people differ in terms of their tendency in general to like/dislike of things.
2) people differ in the extent to how quickly and strongly they react.
Why do we have attitudes?
cognitive heuristics enable us to judge quickly whether stuff is good/bad.
Self-report measures
respondents are asked to report directly on their own behaviours, beliefs, or attitudes.
Pros of self reports measure
simple
straight-forward
Cons of self reports measure
people can lie
questions might be too simple to capture idea.
Attitude Scale
a multiple-item questionnaire designed to measure a person’s attitude toward some object.
Bogus pipeline
a phony lie-detector device that is sometimes used to get respondents to give truthful answers to sensitive questions.
Indirect/Covert Measures of attitudes
covert measures of attitudes that cannot be controlled.
- reaction time, facial expression, tone of voice, body language.
How do we form attitudes?
nurture (environment)
nature (genetics)
Influence of attitudes on politics
- individuals who are more reactive to negative stimuli(snakes, loud noises, shocks) tend to be more conservative (favour capital punishment, gun rights, war).
Facial electromyogrpah (EMG)
an electronic instrument that records facial muscle activity associated with emoting and attitudes.
- zygomatic = happy
Implicit attitude
an attitude that one is not aware of having.
Implicit Association Test
covert measure of unconscious attitudes derived form the speed at which people respond to pairings of concepts.
Are attitudes inherited?
attitudes of identical twins are more similar than those of fraternal twins.
twins raised apart are as similar to each other as those raised in the same home.
Evaluative conditioning
the process by which we form an attitude toward a neutral stimulus because of its association with a positive/negative thing.
Richard LaPiere
noticed that attitudes and behaviour don’t always correspond.
Theory of planned behaviour
the theory that attitudes toward a specific behaviour combine with subjective norms an perceived control ton influence a person’s actions.
Attitudes are strongest when
1) affect own outcomes/interests
2) related to deeply held philosophical/religious values
3) are of concern to family/in-groups
Factors that indicate the strength of an attitude and its link to behaviour
1) when people are well-informed.
2) when info is acquired from personal experience.
3) when attitude is attacked by a persuasive message.
4) when attitude is quickly/easily brought to mind.
Identity & behaviour
getting people to think of their identities helps attitudes influence behaviour
Attitudes determine behaviour under what circumstances?
- when social influences on attitudes are minimized.
- when other influences on behaviour are minimized.
- when attitude corresponds closely to behaviour.
- when attitude is important.
Persuasion
the process by which attitudes are changed.