Attitudes & Behaviour

Question 1

How do people observe the world due to the lack of their being neutral observers of it?

Answer 1

With evaluation, leading to the formation of attitudes.

Question 2

What is an attitude?

Answer 2

A general feeling or evaluation- positive or negative- about some person, object, or issue.

Question 3

Which psychological construct precedes behaviour and guides our choices and decisions related to actions?

Answer 3

The construct pertaining to attitude.

Question 4

What are the two dimensions along which attitudes differ?

Answer 4

• Attitude valence (positive or negative)
• Attitude strength (strong or weak)

Question 5

What are the three components involved in the multicomponent model of attitude?

Answer 5

• The cognitive component (beliefs, thoughts, and attributes related to an object)
• The affective component (feelings or emotions related to an object)
• The behavioural component (past behaviours or experiences relating to an object)

Question 6

What do studies suggest about the three components involved in the multicomponent model of attitude?

Answer 6

That the three components are distinct but synergistic.

Question 7

According to which two factors can the relative importance of each component of the multicomponent model of attitude vary?

Answer 7

• The stimulus
• The individual (on which component they base their attitudes more)

Question 8

What are the two different views on how the content (valence and strength) of attitude is organised?

Answer 8

• The unidimensional view
• The bidimensional view

Question 9

What are the four functions of attitude proposed by Katz (1960)?

Answer 9

• For purposes related to knowledge (to organise information about objects).
• For purposes related to utilitarianism (to maximise rewards or minimise punishments)
• For ego-defensive purposes (to serve a person’s self-esteem)
• For purposes related to expression of value (to express an individual’s self-concept and values)