NATURE OF ATTITUDE

Introduction
When someone verbalizes an attitude, it is called an opinion, and we hear words such as ‘like’,
‘dislike’, ‘really don’t care’. In our next conversation with a friend or family member, notice
how many times these words, or similar words, are used. They indicate that an attitude is being
expressed. As attitudes are ‘mental positions’, they cannot be observed directly. Marketers must
infer attitudes through research methods that require consumers to express opinions. Attitude
towards any object. A person's attitude is "the relatively stable overt behavior which affects his
status"

Defining Attitude
There are many different definitions of ‘attitude’, however, that advanced by Schiffman and
Kanuk contains most of the major concepts: a learned predisposition to behave in a consistently
favorable or unfavorable way with respect to a given object (1996). The main characteristics of
attitudes are indicated by the key words in the definition: learned, predisposition, behave.

Remember that attitudes occur within a situation and that the situation can, and will, influence
the relationship between attitude and behavior. A consumer can have different attitudes towards
the same product depending on the situation.

The main characteristics of attitudes are:

• Attitudes are learned from personal experience, information provided by others, and
market controlled sources, in particular exposure to mass media.

• Attitudes are predispositions. A predisposition is an inclination or tendency towards

something; attitudes have motivational qualities.

• Attitudes have a relationship with behavior. For marketers, the behavior of primary
interest is product purchase. Remember, however, that we are not suggesting or assuming a
causal relationship.

• Attitudes are consistent. However, this does not necessarily mean that they are
permanent; attitudes can change.

• Attitudes are directed towards an object and are very specific reactions to that object.
For example, you like ‘x’ but you don’t like ‘y’. The term ‘object’ includes specific
consumption- or marketing-related concepts, such as product, product category, brand, service,
possessions, product use, advertisement, price, medium, or retailer (Schiffman and Kanuk,
1996).
Social psychologists have given various definitions of the concept.

Most of them view attitudes as:

 A complex mental state involving beliefs and feelings and values and dispositions to act
in certain ways; "he had the attitude that work was fun"
 Position: The arrangement of the body and its limbs; "he assumed an attitude of
surrender"
 A theatrical pose created for effect; "The actor struck just the right attitude"
 Attitude is a hypothetical construct that represents an individual's like or dislike for an
item. Attitudes are positive, negative or neutral views of an "attitude object": i.e. a
person, behavior or event. ...
 The position of the body or way of carrying oneself; Disposition or state of mind; A
negative, irritating, or irritated attitude; The orientation of an aircraft or other vehicle
relative to the horizon, direction of motion etc
Mental disposition, usual frame of mind. Attitudes are subsumed into the abilities. For
example, the ability to interact socially requires certain attitudes.
 The way in which people think and behave towards each other and things.
A personal motivational predisposition to respond to persons, situations, or events in a
given manner that can, nevertheless, be changed or modified through training as a sort of
mental shortcut to decision making.
 An attitude is "a process of individual consciousness which determines real or possible
activity of the individual in the social world"
Attitudes are evaluative statement favorable or unfavorable related to person, object or event.
They reflect that how one feel about something. For example if someone says that I like my job.
This statement expresses his attitude towards his job. Each and every person has different
attitude at different conditions.

There are three components of attitude:

According to fieldman & carl Smith:

“An attitude towards any object, idea or a person is an enduring system with a cognitive
component, an affective component and behavioral tendency.”
1. Cognitive Component What you think.
2. Effective Component What you feel.
3. Behavioral Component What you do.

1: Cognitive Component:

It refers that's part of attitude which is made up of the thoughts and beliefs people hold
about the object of the attitude. for example, he says smoking is injurious to health. Such type
of idea of a person is called cognitive component of attitude.
2: Effective component:
This part of attitude is related to the statement which affects another person. For example, in an
organization a personal report is given to the general manager. In report he point out that the sale
staff is not performing their due responsibilities. The general manager forwards a written notice
to the marketing manager to negotiate with the sale staff.

3: Behavioral Component:
The behavioral component refers to that part of attitude which reflects the intension of a person
in short run or in long run.
For example, before the production and launching process the product. Report is prepared by the
production department which consists of there intention in near future and long run and this
report is handed over to top management for the decision.

FORMATION OF ATTITUDE
Attitude is not be solid, it can be change with the passage of time, with the requirements of the
environment. The formation of attitude not be completed in one day, it is a slowly process. We
have many factors that formatted the attitudes.

There are two major factors these are:

1) Psychological factors
2) Personal Experience

1: Psychological factors
Psychological factors involved in Attitude Formation and Attitude Change

1. Direct Instruction
Direction instruction involves being told what attitudes to have by parents,
schools, community organizations, religious doctrine, friends, etc.
2. Operant Conditioning
Operant conditioning is a simple form of learning. It is based on the “Law of
Effect” and involves voluntary responses. Behaviors (including verbal behaviors
and maybe even thoughts) tend to be repeated if they are reinforced (i.e., followed
by a positive experience). Conversely, behaviors tend to be stopped when they
are punished (i.e., followed by an unpleasant experience). Thus, if one expresses,
or acts out an attitude toward some group, and this is reinforced by one’s peers,
the attitude is strengthened and is likely to be expressed again. The reinforcement
can be as subtle as a smile or as obvious as a raise in salary. Operant conditioning
is especially involved with the behavioral component of attitudes.

3. Classical Conditioning
 Classical conditionings another simple form of learning. It involves involuntary
responses and is acquired through the pairing of two stimuli. Two events that
repeatedly occur close together in time become fused and before long the person
responds in the same way to both events. Originally studied by Pavlov, the
process requires an unconditioned stimulus (UCS) that produces an involuntary
(reflexive) response (UCR). If a neutral stimulus (NS) is paired, either very
dramatically on one occasion, or repeatedly for several acquisition trials, the
neutral stimulus will lead to the same response elicited by the unconditioned
stimulus. At this point the stimulus is no longer neutral and so is referred to as a
conditioned stimulus (CS) and the response has now become a learned response
and so is referred to as a conditioned response (CR). In Pavlov’s research the
UCS was meat powder which led to an UCR of salivation. The NS was a bell. At
first the bell elicited no response from the dog, but eventually the bell alone
caused the dog to salivate. Advertisers create positive attitudes towards their
products by presenting attractive models in their ads. In this case the model is the
UCS and our reaction to him, or her, is an automatic positive response. The
product is the original NS which through pairing comes to elicit a positive
conditioned response. In a similar fashion, pleasant or unpleasant experiences
with members of a particular group could lead to positive or negative attitudes
toward that group. Classical conditioning is especially involved with the
emotional, or affective, component of attitudes.
4. Social (Observational) Learning
Social (observational) learning is based on modeling. We observe others. If they
are getting reinforced for certain behaviors or the expression of certain attitudes,
this serves as vicarious reinforcement and makes it more likely that we, too, will
behave in this manner or express this attitude. Classical conditioning can also
occur vicariously through observation of others.
5. Unconscious Motivation.
Some attitudes are held because they serve some unconscious function for an
individual. For example, a person who is threatened by his homosexual feelings
may employ the defense mechanism of reaction formation and become a crusader
against homosexuals. Or, someone who feels inferior may feel somewhat better
by putting down a group other than her own. Because it is unconscious, the
person will not be aware of the unconscious motivation at the time it is operative,
but may become aware of it as some later point in time.
6. Rational Analysis
Rational analysis involves the careful weighing of evidence for, and against, a
particular attitude. For example, a person may carefully listen to the presidential
debates and read opinions of political experts in order to decide which candidate
to vote for in an election.

2: Personal Experiences
People also learnt attitude through their personal experience. They adopted good attitude by their
personal experience.
There are some factors that describe the personal experience. These are:

1. Reducing Surplus Information

2. Personal Interest
3. Needs satisfaction
4. Solution of problems
5. Previous experience
6. Isolated events
7. Reliable personality
8. Parent’ s influence
9. Teacher’ s influence
10. Mass Communication
11. Stereotype Attitude

Reducing Surplus Information

Every person has lot of information. Which some are necessary or some are unnecessary. Some
people reducing surplus information and format good attitude with necessary information.

Personal Interest
People learned attitude through pleasant and unpleasant thing by their personal interest.

Needs Satisfaction
The things or person that fulfill our desire or needs us format a positive attitude towards. The
thing and person that not fulfill our desires and needs so we built negative attitude towards.

Solution Of Problems
Attitude also developed during solving problems because attitudes are relatively stable and
enduring disposition’ so they are helpful to solving problems in future.

Previous Experience
Our previous experience provides us a base format good attitude for future.

Isolated Events
Some times’ a single incident provide us a base for negative attitude.

Reliable Personality
When we know about liking and disliking of our favorite personality. We also copied his liking
and disliking. So’ we can say that reliable personality influenced on our attitude.
Parent’s Influence
Early in our life parents are the source of our attitudes. As we grew up sources are multiply.

Teacher’s Influence
Teachers are role model for their students. Students copy their teachers. The student’s attitude
influenced by their teacher’s talking style, dressing style, walking style etc

Mass Communication
Mass communication is also influenced on our attitudes. In modern age we have two types of
mass communications. These are:

1. Print Media
2. Electric Media

Mass communication is specially used in different categories for changing and formatting
attitudes.