Behavior and Attitudes
Chapter 4
David Myers
Behavior and Attitudes
How well do attitudes predict behavior?
When does behavior affect attitudes?
Why does behavior affect attitudes?
Behavior and Attitudes
Attitudes – evaluative reactions toward an entity that
are exhibited in your beliefs, feelings, and/or actions
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ABC’s of Attitudes - Affect, Behavior, Cognition
Do Attitudes Determine
Behavior?
Do Attitudes Determine Behavior or Are We
Hypocrites?
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Most incorrectly feel that to change behaviors you must first
change attitudes
Studies show that people’s attitudes don’t predict their
actions very well
Politicians (2008 Election)
Religion
Honesty
Race
Sex (Abstinence Only Programs)
When Do Attitudes Predict Behaviors?
Minimizing Social Influences
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When Social Influences are Minimal (e.g. conformity) Bogus Pipelines, Implicit Association Tests
When Situational Influences are Minimal– attitudes are
better predictors of average behaviors rather than isolated
acts
Specific Attitudes - are better predictors of behavior than
general ones
Potent Attitudes – stronger accessible attitudes are better
predictors of behavior
Do Behaviors Determine
Attitudes?
Festinger’s Attitude Theory – changing one’s
behaviors will lead to changes in attitudes
 Roles - can lead to dramatic changes in attitudes
Do Behaviors Determine Attitudes?
Stanford Prison Experiment
Do Behaviors Determine Attitudes?
Saying Becomes Believing Effect – we adjust our message to
the audience and then believe it more ourselves
Foot-in-the-Door Phenomenon – the tendency to comply with a
larger request after having previously agreed to a small request
Cialdini’s Low-Ball Technique – people who agree to an initial
request will still agree when the stakes are higher
Evil and Moral Acts and Attitude
Change
Harmful/Evil Acts – minor acts of harm makes it easier
to commit larger acts later on
Moral Acts - chosen moral action also leads to attitude
change
 Interracial Attitudes & Behaviors
 Social Movements
Why Do Actions Affect Attitudes?
Self Presentation Theory: Impression Management
 we express attitudes that match our actions in order
to appear consistent
 Self-monitoring - attention one gives to situations
and corresponding self-presentations
Why Do Actions Affect Attitudes?
Self-justification Theory: Cognitive Dissonance – we
are motivated to maintain cognitive consistency
 Festinger ‘s Cognitive Dissonance Theory – we feel
tension when two thoughts or beliefs are
inconsistent with one another
Insufficient Justification – altering one’s attitude
when there is a lack of justification for a behavior
dee
Self-justification Theory: Cognitive
Dissonance
Dissonance & Decisions – choosing between equally
appealing options causes dissonance
 Reduce dissonance by upgrading your choice and
downgrading the unchosen option
Why Do Actions Affect Attitudes?
Self-Perception Theory - when unsure of our attitudes
we infer them by self-observation
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Expressions and Attitudes – manipulating facial muscles
causes students to report anger or happiness
Mimicry -Mirroring others allows us to experience their
feelings
Overjustification Effect – rewarding someone for doing
something they like will cause them to lose interest
Unanticipated rewards or rewards that make one feel
good don’t diminish intrinsic appeal or motivation
Self-Justification or Self-Perception?
Dissonance Theory appears to explain attitude change
Self-perception Theory explains attitude formations.