Transcript Attitude - Educational Psychology

Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Introduction to Attitudes
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Overview
Concept of Attitudes
Formation of Attitudes
Relationship between Attitudes and
Behavior
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Attitudes
Attitude: Positive or negative reaction to a
person, object, or idea
Good-bad
Harmful-Beneficial
Pleasant-Unpleasant
Likeable-Dislikable
Very
Good
Very
Bad
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Attitudes
Personality: Characteristic patterns of
thought, emotions, and behavior
Attitudes should change based on experience
Personality should be relatively stable over
time
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Assumptions
Three assumptions in the study of
attitudes:
An attitude is a hypothetical construct
An attitude is a unidimensional construct
Attitudes influence behavior
Differences in behavior toward an object can be
explained by underlying attitudes
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Areas of Research in Attitudes
How attitudes are formed
How attitudes are changed
How attitudes relate to behavioral
intentions
How attitudes relate to behaviors
themselves
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Function of Attitudes
(Daniel Katz, 1960)
 Instrumental: Develop attitudes to obtain a reward or
avoid punishment
 Change: Convince alternative is more beneficial
 Knowledge: Make sense of the world
 Change: Provide an explanation that makes more sense, or
explains more data
 Value-Expressive: Attitudes are an expression of one’s
values
 Difficult to change: Convince that an alternative attitude is
more consistent with values
 Social Adjustment: Hold the attitudes of people who
are similar
 Change: Change the social norms
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Attitude Expression
Attitudes are manifested by
Affective: Feelings about the object
Behavioral: Interactions with the object
Cognitive Information: What you think about
the object
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Forming Attitudes
 Direct Instruction: Instruction in attitudes
 Classical Conditioning: Law of Association
 Operant Conditioning: Law of Effect
 Observational Learning: Modeling
 Cognitive Dissonance: Behavior inconsistent
with attitudes results in attitude change
 Rational Analysis: Carefully weigh both sides
of an issue
 Social Comparison: Compare one’s attitudes to
others
 Primacy effect: First impression
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Balance Theory (Heider, 1946)
Assumption: People have a drive toward
psychological balance
Three components of the system:
Person (P)
Other Person (O)
Object (X)
Liking relationships are balanced if the
affect multiplies to positive
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Balance Theory (Heider, 1946)
Person:
You
Like
Like
Other Person:
Traditional Ruler
Object:
PDP
Like
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Balance Theory
Person:
You
Dislike
Like
Other Person:
Traditional Ruler
Object:
PDP
Dislike
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Balance Theory
Person:
You
P
Dislike
Other Person:
Traditional Ruler
-
O
+
-
Dislike
Like
X
Object:
PDP
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Balance Theory
Person:
You
P
Like
Other Person:
Traditional Ruler
-
+
O
+
Like
Dislike
X
Object:
PDP
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Balance Theory
Person:
You
P
Like
Other Person:
Traditional Ruler
+
O
+
-
Dislike
Like
X
Object:
PDP
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Balance Theory
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Balance Theory
 With an imbalance, a person can:
Change the opinion of the other person
Change the opinion of the object
Decide the other person is mistaken
Avoid the other person and object
 Conclusion
My friend’s friend is my friend
My friend’s enemy is my enemy
My enemy’s friend is my enemy
My enemy’s enemy is my friend
(Heider, 1958)
Andrew left the house to go to the market with two of
his friends. The market was filled with people, and he
talked to an acquaintance while he waited on the
vendor. On the way out, he stopped to chat with an
old friend who was just going to the market. Leaving
the market, he walked to school. On the way to the
school, he talked to a girl whom he met the night
before. Leaving the school, he started the walk
home. He saw the girl he met the night before and
crossed the street. He stopped by a Food Is Ready.
The restaurant was filled with people and he noticed
a few familiar faces. Andrew sat down at a table and
waited quietly until he was able to place his order.
When he finished his mineral, he went home.
Thomas left the house to go to the market. The
market was filled with people and he noticed a few
familiar faces. He waited quietly until he caught the
attention of the vendor. When he finished at the
market, he walked to school. On the way to the
school, he saw a girl he met the night before and
crossed the street. Leaving the school, he started the
walk home with two of his friends. He stopped by a
Food Is Ready. The restaurant was filled with people
and he talked to an acquaintance while he waited to
place his order. When he finished his mineral, he
chatted with an old friend on his way out the door. He
saw the girl he met the night before and stopped to
talk to her.
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Primacy Effect
Four potential interactions
Left the house/market
Waiting on vendor/place order
Leaving the market/Food Is Ready
Run into girl met the night before
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Percent Rate as Friendly
Primacy Effect
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Friendly Only
FriendlyUnfriendly
UnfriendlyFriendly
Adapted from (Luchins, 1957)
Unfriendly Only
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Primacy Effect
Initial Interaction: Actively process
information to make a decision
Decision: Positive or Negative Attitude
Future Interactions
Accept further information related to decision
Reject information not related to decision
Conclusion: Established attitudes shape
future perceptions of information
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Educational Implications
Teacher’s Attitudes Toward Students
Ability
Motivation
Effort
Likability
Student’s Attitudes Toward Teachers
Start the course strict, can lighten up later
Think of the impression you want to make,
specifically aim to foster that impression early
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Educational Implications
 If students do not have a positive attitude, try to
teach the appropriate attitude directly
Direct Instruction and Rational Analysis
 Model positive attitudes because your students
will be observing you
Classical Conditioning, Observational Learning, Social
Comparison
 Reward students for appropriate attitudes with
social approval and recognition
Operant Conditioning
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Educational Implications
Ensure that students with appropriate
attitudes are not punished
Operant Conditioning
If students’ behavior does not match their
professed attitudes, point it out
Cognitive Dissonance
Use popular students to assist you with
attitude modification
Social Comparison
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Interpreting Correlations
Nature:
Strength:
-1
Negative
Positive
0
 Nature
Positive: Two variables increase or decrease together
Negative: As one variable increases, the other
decreases
 Strength
Closer to -1 or +1 is stronger relationship
0 is no relationship
+1
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Correlation = 1.00
35
33
29
(cm)
Size of Feet
31
27
25
23
21
19
17
15
30
35
40
Shoe Size
45
50
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Correlation = .04
4.50
4.00
Intelligence
3.50
3.00
2.50
2.00
1.50
1.00
0.50
0.00
0.00
2.00
4.00
6.00
8.00
Shoe Size
10.00
12.00
14.00
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Correlation = .78
100
90
.
70
Exam Score
80
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
2
4
6
Hours Studied
8
10
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Correlation = -.86
4.00
3.50
.
2.50
GPA
3.00
2.00
1.50
1.00
0.50
0.00
0
2
4
6
Hours per day watching TV
8
10
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Attitudes and Behavior
Early Major Research Question:
Do attitudes determine behavior?
Attitudes
Behavior
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Attitudes and Behavior
LaPiere’s Classic Study (1934)
American’s perception of Chinese
Corey (1937) attitudes and cheating study
Wicker (1969) reviewed 42 studies
Average correlation between attitudes and
behavior was .15
Recommended to abandon construct of attitude
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Attitudes and Behavior
Reasons why Attitudes do not correlate
with Behavior
Expressed attitudes may not be the same as
true attitudes
Aspects of Attitude have varying relationships
with behavior
Affective, Behavioral, or Cognitive
Differences in perceptions of the question
General vs. Specific Attitudes and Behavior
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
General vs. Specific Attitudes and
Behavior
Most studies tried to predict specific
behaviors from general attitudes
Three solutions:
Predict wide range of behaviors
Multiple Act Criterion
Predict same behavior in several contexts
Repeated Observation Criterion
Correlations will be about .60
Measure specific attitudes
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
General vs. Specific Attitudes and Behavior
(Fishbein & Ajzen, 1974)
 Assessed participants’:
 General religious attitude
 100 specific religious behaviors
 Own bible, take a course in religion, going shopping on the Sabbath,
refuse to attend class on religious holiday
1
Correlation
0.9
0.8
0.7
0.6
0.5
0.4
0.3
0.2
0.1
0
Single Act
Multiple Acts
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
General vs. Specific Attitudes and Behavior
(Davidson & Jaccard, 1979)
Correlation
 Predict use of birth control pills
1
0.9
0.8
0.7
0.6
0.5
0.4
0.3
0.2
0.1
0
Birth Control
Birth Control Pills
Using Pills
Using Pills within
2 Years
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Attitudes and Behavior
 Principle of Compatibility: Attitudes and
Behavior should correspond on the following
Target: Reason for performing a behavior
Action: Behavior to be examined
Context: Location where behavior will be executed
Time: When behavior will be completed
 Conclusion:
If measure general attitude, use multiple behaviors
If predicting specific behavior, measure attitude toward
that specific behavior
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Attitudes and Behavior
(Ajzen & Fishbein, 1977)
Analyzed studies to determine whether
they met the Principle of Compatibility
All studies that met the Principle of
Compatibility had significant correlations
(N=26)
Near-perfect correlation between
Compatibility and Level of AttitudeBehavior consistency
r = .83
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Conclusion
Fishbein & Ajzen concluded that Attitude is
one of a number of constructs that
influences behavior
Current research questions:
What variables moderate the influence of
attitudes on behavior?
Attitudes
Moderator
Behavior
Dr. K. A. Korb
University of Jos
Revision
What are attitudes?
How are attitudes formed?
How should attitudes and behavior be
measured to get a significant relationship?