Types and Nature of Attitude
It can be- Positive (supportive)
- Negative (rejective)
- Neutral or ambivalent (neither supportive nor rejecting)
It can also be
- Explicit Attitude (Conscious): When a person is aware of their own attitudes and how they influence their actions, those attitudes are called explicit.
- These are formed through conscious thought.
- Implicit Attitude (Sub-Conscious): When a person is not aware of their attitudes or how they affect their behavior, those are called implicit.
- These are formed without conscious awareness.
Features or Nature of Attitude:
- Attitudes often lead to and influence people's behavior or actions.
- Attitudes are developed gradually over time.
- Attitudes are evaluative in nature, meaning they can be either favorable or unfavorable.
- Everyone, regardless of their status or intelligence, has attitudes.
- An attitude can be held unconsciously.
Function of Attitude
Methods to Changing Attitude
Attitude change refers to the modification of an individual’s evaluative orientation toward a person, object, idea, or event. Attitudes can shift in several directions: from positive to negative, from neutral to favourable, or from mild dislike to strong hostility. Change can occur gradually through experience or rapidly due to persuasive communication, social influence, or psychological discomfort. Several theoretical frameworks explain how and why attitude transformation occurs.
1. Learning Theory of Attitude Change
According to the Learning Approach, attitudes are developed and altered through conditioning processes. Individuals acquire new responses based on previous experiences, reinforcements, and social observation.
Classical Conditioning
Attitude change can be achieved by pairing a target object with positive or pleasant stimuli. Over repeated associations, favourable emotional responses become linked to the object, event, or person. Advertisements frequently use this technique by associating brands with happiness, prestige, or attractive imagery.
Operant Conditioning
Positive reinforcement strengthens desirable attitudes, while punishment or negative feedback discourages undesirable ones. Approval from society, peers, or authority figures acts as reinforcement, motivating individuals to adopt socially accepted attitudes.
Observational Learning
People often modify attitudes by watching others—especially role models, parents, leaders, or influential peers. Through modelling and imitation, individuals internalize attitudes that appear rewarded or socially approved.
2. Elaboration Likelihood Theory (ELT) of Persuasion
This theory explains two distinct routes through which persuasive communication can alter attitudes:
Central Route Processing
When individuals are motivated, attentive, and capable of analysing information carefully, they evaluate arguments logically. Thought-provoking, evidence-based messages processed through this route result in stable and long-lasting attitude change. This requires cognitive engagement.
Peripheral Route Processing
When motivation or ability to process information is low, individuals rely on superficial cues such as the speaker’s attractiveness, popularity, confidence, or status. While this route can temporarily shift attitudes, the impact tends to be short-lived and easily reversible.
This theory highlights that strong arguments change attitudes permanently, while superficial persuasion produces surface-level shifts.
3. Cognitive Dissonance Theory
Cognitive dissonance refers to the psychological discomfort created when a person holds two or more contradictory beliefs, attitudes, or behaviours simultaneously. To minimize this internal tension, individuals often modify their attitudes to restore mental harmony.
For example, if someone behaves inconsistently with their existing beliefs—perhaps due to external incentives or social expectations—they may gradually adjust their attitudes to align with their actions. By doing so, they reduce the dissonance and achieve consistency.
The key insight of this theory is that people are motivated not by truth alone, but by the desire for internal psychological balance.
Conclusion
Attitude change is influenced by learning mechanisms, persuasive communication routes, and psychological drives. Whether through conditioning, cognitive evaluation, or dissonance reduction, attitudes evolve as individuals adapt to new information, environments, and social expectations. Understanding these mechanisms is essential for administrators, policymakers, educators, and behavioural scientists aiming to promote positive social behaviour and ethical decision-making.