Lecture 5 Chapter 6

Question 1

What is an attitude

Answer 1

A positive, negative or mixed reaction to a person or object and idea

Question 2

what is self esteem?

Answer 2

an attitude we hold about ourselves

Question 3

what is attraction

Answer 3

a positive attitude towards another person

Question 4

what is prejudice

Answer 4

a negative attitude often directed
against certain groups

Question 5

what are some terms that people use to describe their attitudes

Answer 5

• Like
• love
• dislike,
• hate
• admire
• detest

Question 6

how are attitudes formed?

Answer 6

The attitude formation process is quick and automatic, it kind of is like a reflex

Question 7

what are the main 4 reaction affects that “makes” an attitude and how can our attitudes vary in strength?

Answer 7

we can react to something with
1) positive affect
2) negative affect
3) ambivalence (mixed emotions),
4) apathy and indifference

at times, people have both positive and negative reactions
to the same attitude object without feeling conflict because they are conscious of one reaction but not the other.

Question 8

What two ways do people differ that showcase how our attitudes reveal a lot about us as individuals?

Answer 8

1. The difference of peoples tendency in general to like or dislike things.
2. people differ in the extent to which
   how quickly and how strongly they react.

Question 9

how is having an attitude adaptive but a downside too?

Answer 9

• Over the years, researchers have found that attitudes serve important functions—such as enabling us to judge quickly and without much
  thought whether something we first encounter is good or bad, helpful or hurtful,
  and to be sought or avoided

-The downside is that having
preexisting attitudes can lead us to be closed-minded, bias how we interpret new
information, and make us more resistant to change

Question 10

how can you measure attitudes?

Answer 10

1) self reports
2) covert measures
3) Implicit Association Test
(IAT)

Question 11

what are self reports?

Answer 11

easiest way to assess a person’s attitude about something
is to ask. involves attitdue scales and bogus pipelines

Question 12

what are attitude scales?

Answer 12

A multiple-item
questionnaire designed to measure a
person’s attitude toward some object.

Question 13

what is Bogus pipeline?

Answer 13

Phony lie-detector device designed to get truthful answers to sensitive questions
* Improves honesty

Question 14

what are covert measures

Answer 14

A second general approach to the self-report problem is to
collect indirect, covert measures of attitudes that cannot be controlled.
includes Facial electromyograph
(EMG) and Brain imaging

Question 15

what Facial electromyograph
(EMG)?

Answer 15

An electronic instrument that records
facial muscle activity associated with
emotions and attitudes. certain muscles in
the face contract when we are happy, and different facial muscles contract when
we are sad. Some of the muscular changes cannot be seen with the naked eye,
however, so the facial EMG is used

Question 16

what are two ways of seeing Brain imaging

Answer 16

• EEG (brain waves)
• fMRI (brain activity)

Question 17

whats the Implicit Association Test
(IAT)

Answer 17

is based on the notion that each of us has
all sorts of implicit attitudes that we cannot self-report in questionnaires because
we are not even aware of having these attitudes. the IAT measures the sheer speed—in fractions of a second—with which people
associate pairs of concepts

• Through a sequence of tasks, the IAT measures implicit racial attitudes toward, for
  example, African Americans by measuring how quickly people respond to black-bad/
  white-good word pairings relative to black-good/white-bad pairings. Most white
  Americans are quicker to respond to the first type of pairings than to the second, which
  suggests that they do not as readily connect black-good and white-bad.

Question 18

can implicit attittudes change? what does the Charlesworth & Banaji, 2019 tsudy say?

Answer 18

Research has tracked recent changes over time in various U.S.-based tests of implicit and explicit
attitudes. On some topics, such as people’s tolerance for obesity, survey results suggested lessening
negativity, but IAT scores did not confirm this change. On other topics, however, most notably attitudes
about sexual orientation, people exhibited less negativity toward gays on both explicit measures and
the IAT. Based on these changes, researchers estimate that Americans will exhibit zero preference on
explicit measures in 5 years and on the IAT in 9 years

Question 19

what are some Scrutiny of IAT

Answer 19

• Explicit attitudes better predict behavior than IAT
• But IAT predicts socially sensitive behaviors better than
  explicit attitudes
• E.g., Suicide attempts

Question 20

How Attitudes are Formed?

Answer 20

• Genetic makeup (nature)
• Learning (nurture):

Question 21

explain how genetic makeup contributes to how attitudes are formed

Answer 21

• Research shows that on some issues the attitudes of identical twins are more similar than those of fraternal twins and that twins raised apart are as similar to each other as
  those who are raised in the same home.
• this suggests that people
  may be predisposed to hold certain attitudes.
• Tesser found that when
  asked about attitudes for which there seems to be a predisposition (such as attitudes
  toward sexual promiscuity, religion, and the death penalty), research participants
  were quicker to respond and less likely to alter their views toward social norms

Question 22

explain how learning contributes to how attittudes are formed

Answer 22

• Exposure to attitude objects
• Rewards and punishments
• Attitudes that our parents, friends, and enemies express
• The social and cultural context
• Evaluative conditioning: Forming attitudes toward a
  neutral stimulus because of its association with a
  positive or negative person, place, or thing

Question 23

Whats the Link Between Attitudes and Behaviour

Answer 23

Attitudes do not always predict behaviour
* E.g., LaPiere (1934)
* Attitudes most clearly predict behavior when:
* The attitude measures ask about the exact behavior
* In the context of deliberate decision making (Theory
of Planned Behavior)
* The attitudes are strongly held
* Cultural attitudes about preference and choice can
influence behaviour

Question 24

explain the Theory of Planned Behaviour (Fishbein &
Ajzen)

Answer 24

The theory that attitudes toward
a specific behavior combine with
subjective norms and perceived control
to influence a person’s actions.

( Attitude toward a behavior + Subjective norm + Perceived behavior control ) = (Intention) = (Behavior)

Question 25

whats Persuasion?

Answer 25

The process by which attitudes are changed * Dual processing model of persuasion

Question 26

central route to persuasion

Answer 26

* A person thinks carefully about a communication and is influenced by the strength of its arguments * Elaboration: The process of thinking about and scrutinizing the arguments contained in a persuasive communication * Rational process, but we have biases * E.g., Knobloch-Westerwick et al., 2015 * Time 1: Reported attitude on politically charged issues * Time 2: Browse articles that supported or opposed their attitudes * Participants spent 64% more time on articles that supported their existing attitudes (confirmation bias)

Question 27

whats the The Peripheral Route

Answer 27

A person does not think carefully about a communication and is influenced instead by superficial cues * Familiarity, charisma, well-spoken, apparent expertise, etc. * E.g., Support for politician b/c of emotionally powerful speeches despite poor quality of candidate * E.g., Purchasing new smart phone b/c of shiny ads even though it is only marginally different than your current one * Simpleminded heuristics * Attitude embodiment effects: our own body movements cue our attitudes

Question 28

how do you decide the Route Selection

Answer 28

* Depends on whether the recipients of a persuasive message have the ability and motivation to take the central route * The way we process persuasive communication depends on: 1. Source: who is presenting the message 2. Message: says what and in what context 3. Audience: to whom the message is directed Central route for high personal relevance Peripheral route for low personal relevance

Question 29

what makes some communicators in general more effective than others

Answer 29

are two key attributes: credibility and likability.

Question 30

whats credibility?

Answer 30

* Credibility * Competence (ability or expertise) * Trustworthiness * Suspicious of self-interes

Question 31

whats likability?

Answer 31

* Similarity * Physical attractiveness

Question 32

in terms of persuading does the source of message matter?

Answer 32

* Source does not always outweigh the message * Personal relevance of message  more attention and critical thinking (Petty et al., 1981) - When people process a message lazily, with their eyes and ears half closed, they often fall back on a simple heuristic: The longer a message, the more valid it must be. In this case, a large number of words gives the superficial appearance of factual support regardless of the quality of the arguments (Petty & Cacioppo, 1984; Wood et al., 1985).

Question 33

what factors do u need to take into consideration for an effective strategy

Answer 33

* Most effective strategy depends on audience’s route * Length of a communication * Central process: Quality > Length * Peripheral process: Longer  More valid (heuristic) * Time is critical: Primacy versus recency effects * Two messages back-to-back, remember first better * Two messages spaced out, remember second better

Question 34

explain Message Discrepancy

Answer 34

* How discrepant should a message be from the audience’s existing position to have the greatest impact? * Moderate discrepancy or else audience may reject completely * The more personally important an issue is to us, more stubborn and resistant to change we become

Question 35

how can the message appeal to emotions

Answer 35

* Persuade through heart, not mind * Tend to spontaneously express more emotion when trying to persuade * Language used in each participant’s appeal by measuring the use of emotional words: amazing, awful, loved, and hated Rocklage et al., 2018

Question 36

how can a Fear Appeal in message work to persuade

Answer 36

* Fear can work for people who don’t actively resist change * Strength of argument matters * Messages with clear and reassuring advice on how to cope with the danger are more effective * Must have specific instructions on how to cope * Otherwise, helpless, panic, tune out

Question 37

how can postive emotions affect the message

Answer 37

* When people are in a good mood, they become more: * Sociable * Generous * Positive in their outlook * Positive feelings activate the peripheral route to persuasion * Why? * Cognitively distracting * Let guard down and lazily process * Stay happy by avoiding critical thinking

Question 38

what are Subliminal Messages

Answer 38

* Commercial messages outside of conscious awareness * Controlled experiments using subliminal self-help materials offer no therapeutic benefits * People may respond to subliminal cues in the short term when they are already motivated to take the action

Question 39

what are Subliminal Influences

Answer 39

- Thirsty and non-thirsty research participants were subliminally exposed to neutral or thirst-related words. Afterward, they participated in a beverage taste test in which the amount they drank was measured. You can see that the subliminal thirst cues had little impact on non-thirsty participants but that they did increase consumption among those who were thirsty. Apparently, subliminal cues can influence our behavior when we are otherwise predisposed. * IV 1: Thirsty vs. not-thirsty participants * IV 2: Thirst vs. neutral primes * DV: How much participants drank * Subliminal thirst primes only increased thirsty participants drink consumption Strahan et al., 2002

Question 40

whats The Audience

Answer 40

* Very few individuals are consistently easy/difficult to persuade * The Need for Cognition: A personality variable regarding how much a person enjoys effortful cognitive activities * Self-Monitoring: Regulating own behaviors across situations due to concern for public self-presentation * Regulatory Fit * E.g., Promotion-oriented vs. prevention-oriented

Question 41

whats Forewarning and Resistance

Answer 41

When our attitudes come under attack, we can succumb and change the attitude, or we can resist and maintain the attitude.

Question 42

why do people resist?

Answer 42

When people know that someone is trying to change their attitude, they become resistant. All they need is some time to collect their thoughts and come up with a good defense * Cognitive: Can come up with counter-arguments * Motivational: Brace or steel ourselves in our opinions

Question 43

whats Inoculation hypothesis:

Answer 43

Exposure to weak versions of a persuasive argument increases later resistance to argumen

Question 44

whats Psychological reactance

Answer 44

The theory that people react against threats to their freedom by asserting themselves and perceiving the threatened freedom as more attractive

Question 45

how does Culture and Persuasion work

Answer 45

* To be persuasive, appeal to the audience’s cultural factors * Individualistic cultures’ persuasive messages focus on personal benefits, individuality, competition, and self- improvement * Collectivist cultures’ persuasive messages focus on integrity, achievement, and the well-being of one’s ingroups

Question 46

explain Role Playing

Answer 46

* We often have to do things in our social roles that do not align with our own attitudes – e.g., in our job * Do we begin to change those attitudes as a result? * Generating discrepant arguments --> more attitude change * Self-generated persuasion * Behavior --> Attitudes

Question 47

whats Cognitive Dissonance Theory

Answer 47

Inconsistent cognitions arouses psychological tension that people become motivated to reduce * E.g., Want to be healthy but eat only fast food * E.g., Want to be a good student but don’t study

Question 48

what are the Conditions for cognitive dissonance

Answer 48

* An attitude-discrepant behavior * Chosen freely * With some knowledge of the consequences

Question 49

how do u Reduce Dissonance explain

Answer 49

1) Change your attitude “I don’t really need to be on a diet.” 2) Change your perception of the behavior “I hardly ate any ice cream.” 3 )Add behavior-supporting cognitions “Chocolate ice cream is very nutritious.” 4) Minimize the importance of the conflict “I don’t care if I’m overweight - life is short!” 5) Reduce perceived choice “I had no choice; the ice cream was served for this special occasion.”

Question 50

explain Dissonance Classic: Festinger & Carlsmith (1959

Answer 50

* Participants do a super boring task * IV: asked to lie and say task was interesting to next participant, offered: no money, $1, or $20 * $1 condition rated boring task as more enjoyable * Self-persuasion & smaller reward  more change

Question 51

Cognitive dissonance and attitude change more likely if.

Answer 51

1. insufficient justification * e.g., do something we don’t want to do for only a dollar and convince ourselves we did want to do it (because being paid a dollar is not sufficient justification) OR 2. insufficient deterrence for attitude-discrepant non-behavior * e.g., don’t do something because someone tells us if we do, they will take a dollar, and we convince ourselves we didn’t really want to do that thing anyways (because losing a dollar doesn’t seem like sufficient deterrence)

Question 52

how do we Justifying Effor

Answer 52

* We alter our attitudes to justify our suffering * The more time, money, or effort you choose to invest in something, the more anxious you feel if the outcome disappoints * Change attitude and like the thing even if it disappoints

Question 53

how to Justifying Difficult Decisions

Answer 53

* People rationalize whatever they decide by... * Exaggerating positive features of the chosen alternative * Exaggerating negative features of the unchosen alternative * These exaggerations occur after we make our decision * E.g., Which wedding venues * E.g., Which university to attend * E.g., Which job offer to accept * E.g., To try for children or no

Question 54

whats a modern look at Cognitive Dissonance Theory

Answer 54

* 4 steps for arousal/reduction of dissonance (Cooper & Fazio, 1984): 1. An attitude-discrepant behaviour must produce unwanted negative consequences 2. A feeling of personal responsibility for the unpleasant outcomes of behaviour * Must freely choose and foresee consequences to feel responsible 3. Physiological arousal that produces a state of discomfort and tension that the person seeks to reduce 4. Attribute that arousal to their own behaviour

Question 55

Culture and Cognitive Dissonance

Answer 55

* Cultural context impacts arousal & reduction of cognitive dissonance: * Western (individualist) cultures: Decisions are expected to be consistent with personal attitudes * East Asian (collectivist) cultures: Decisions are expected to benefit ingroup members * Post-decision justification effect occurs in both groups, but cultures influence the conditions under which these processes occur

Question 55

list three Alternative Routes to Self-Persuasion

Answer 55

* Self-perception theory: We infer how we feel by observing ourselves and the circumstances of our own behavior * Impression-management theory: What matters is not a motive to be consistent but rather a motive to appear consistent * Self-esteem theories: Acts that arouse dissonance do so because they threaten the self-concept