{"id":596,"date":"2023-03-03T19:13:37","date_gmt":"2023-03-03T19:13:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/content.one.lumenlearning.com\/introductiontopsychology\/chapter\/attitudes-and-persuasion\/"},"modified":"2025-12-09T18:47:47","modified_gmt":"2025-12-09T18:47:47","slug":"attitudes-and-persuasion","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/content.one.lumenlearning.com\/introductiontopsychology\/chapter\/attitudes-and-persuasion\/","title":{"raw":"Attitudes and Persuasion: Learn It 1\u2014Attitudes","rendered":"Attitudes and Persuasion: Learn It 1\u2014Attitudes"},"content":{"raw":"<section class=\"textbox learningGoals\">\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li>Describe attitudes and ways they can be influenced or changed<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Explain cognitive dissonance<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Compare\u00a0the peripheral and central routes to persuasion<\/li>\r\n\t<li>Describe common tricks of persuasion<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/section>\r\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal \">Social psychologists have documented how the power of the situation can influence our behaviors. Now we turn to how situations can also shape our attitudes and beliefs\u2014and how we sometimes consciously choose to change them ourselves.<\/p>\r\n<section class=\"textbox keyTakeaway\">\r\n<h3>attitude<\/h3>\r\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal \">In psychology, an <strong>attitude<\/strong> is our evaluation of a person, idea, or object. Attitudes are the mental positions we hold toward virtually everything in our lives\u2014from products we see in the supermarket to people we encounter to political policies we consider. These evaluations typically range from favorable to unfavorable, or positive to negative (Eagly &amp; Chaiken, 1993).<\/p>\r\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal \">Psychologists have identified three key components that make up attitudes (Rosenberg &amp; Hovland, 1960):<br \/>\r\n<br \/>\r\n<\/p>\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal \"><strong>Affective component (feelings)<\/strong>: The emotional reactions or feelings associated with the attitude object<\/li>\r\n\t<li class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal \"><strong style=\"font-family: 'Public Sans', -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'Segoe UI', Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif;\">Behavioral component<\/strong><span style=\"font-family: 'Public Sans', -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'Segoe UI', Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif;\">: The way the attitude influences our actions and behavior<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal \"><strong style=\"font-family: 'Public Sans', -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'Segoe UI', Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif;\">Cognitive component<\/strong><span style=\"font-family: 'Public Sans', -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'Segoe UI', Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif;\">: The beliefs, thoughts, and knowledge we have about the attitude objec<\/span><\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<\/section>\r\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal \">Consider an example: You may hold a positive attitude toward recycling.<\/p>\r\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal \">The <strong>affective component<\/strong> includes your feelings\u2014\"It makes me feel good to recycle\" or \"I enjoy knowing that I make a small difference in reducing landfill waste.\"<\/p>\r\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal \">The <strong>behavioral component<\/strong> is reflected in your actions\u2014you actually recycle as often as you can.<\/p>\r\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal \">The <strong>cognitive component<\/strong> includes your beliefs and thoughts\u2014\"Recycling is good for the environment\" or \"Recycling is the responsible thing to do.\"<\/p>\r\n<h3 class=\"font-claude-response-subheading text-text-100 mt-1 -mb-1.5\">Internal and External Influences on Attitudes<\/h3>\r\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal \">Our attitudes and beliefs are shaped by both external forces (such as social situations and persuasive messages) and internal influences that we control. Like our behavior, our attitudes are not always changed by situational pressures alone. We also possess the ability to consciously examine and change our own attitudes through deliberate thought and reflection. In this section, we discuss both how situations influence our attitudes and the conditions under which we choose to change our own attitudes and beliefs.<\/p>\r\n<section class=\"textbox tryIt\">[ohm2_question height=\"500\"]4356[\/ohm2_question]<\/section>","rendered":"<section class=\"textbox learningGoals\">\n<ul>\n<li>Describe attitudes and ways they can be influenced or changed<\/li>\n<li>Explain cognitive dissonance<\/li>\n<li>Compare\u00a0the peripheral and central routes to persuasion<\/li>\n<li>Describe common tricks of persuasion<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/section>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\">Social psychologists have documented how the power of the situation can influence our behaviors. Now we turn to how situations can also shape our attitudes and beliefs\u2014and how we sometimes consciously choose to change them ourselves.<\/p>\n<section class=\"textbox keyTakeaway\">\n<h3>attitude<\/h3>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\">In psychology, an <strong>attitude<\/strong> is our evaluation of a person, idea, or object. Attitudes are the mental positions we hold toward virtually everything in our lives\u2014from products we see in the supermarket to people we encounter to political policies we consider. These evaluations typically range from favorable to unfavorable, or positive to negative (Eagly &amp; Chaiken, 1993).<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\">Psychologists have identified three key components that make up attitudes (Rosenberg &amp; Hovland, 1960):<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"><strong>Affective component (feelings)<\/strong>: The emotional reactions or feelings associated with the attitude object<\/li>\n<li class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"><strong style=\"font-family: 'Public Sans', -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'Segoe UI', Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif;\">Behavioral component<\/strong><span style=\"font-family: 'Public Sans', -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'Segoe UI', Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif;\">: The way the attitude influences our actions and behavior<\/span><\/li>\n<li class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"><strong style=\"font-family: 'Public Sans', -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'Segoe UI', Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif;\">Cognitive component<\/strong><span style=\"font-family: 'Public Sans', -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'Segoe UI', Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif;\">: The beliefs, thoughts, and knowledge we have about the attitude objec<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/section>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\">Consider an example: You may hold a positive attitude toward recycling.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\">The <strong>affective component<\/strong> includes your feelings\u2014&#8221;It makes me feel good to recycle&#8221; or &#8220;I enjoy knowing that I make a small difference in reducing landfill waste.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\">The <strong>behavioral component<\/strong> is reflected in your actions\u2014you actually recycle as often as you can.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\">The <strong>cognitive component<\/strong> includes your beliefs and thoughts\u2014&#8221;Recycling is good for the environment&#8221; or &#8220;Recycling is the responsible thing to do.&#8221;<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"font-claude-response-subheading text-text-100 mt-1 -mb-1.5\">Internal and External Influences on Attitudes<\/h3>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\">Our attitudes and beliefs are shaped by both external forces (such as social situations and persuasive messages) and internal influences that we control. Like our behavior, our attitudes are not always changed by situational pressures alone. We also possess the ability to consciously examine and change our own attitudes through deliberate thought and reflection. In this section, we discuss both how situations influence our attitudes and the conditions under which we choose to change our own attitudes and beliefs.<\/p>\n<section class=\"textbox tryIt\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" id=\"ohm4356\" class=\"resizable\" src=\"https:\/\/ohm.one.lumenlearning.com\/multiembedq.php?id=4356&theme=lumen&iframe_resize_id=ohm4356&source=tnh&show_question_numbers\" width=\"100%\" height=\"500\"><\/iframe><\/section>\n","protected":false},"author":20,"menu_order":11,"template":"","meta":{"_candela_citation":"[{\"type\":\"cc\",\"description\":\"Attitudes and Persuasion\",\"author\":\"OpenStax College\",\"organization\":\"\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/openstax.org\/books\/psychology-2e\/pages\/12-3-attitudes-and-persuasion\",\"project\":\"\",\"license\":\"cc-by\",\"license_terms\":\"Download for free at https:\/\/openstax.org\/books\/psychology-2e\/pages\/1-introduction\"}]","pb_show_title":"on","pb_short_title":"","pb_subtitle":"","pb_authors":[],"pb_section_license":""},"chapter-type":[],"contributor":[],"license":[],"part":585,"module-header":"learn_it","content_attributions":[{"type":"cc","description":"Attitudes and Persuasion","author":"OpenStax College","organization":"","url":"https:\/\/openstax.org\/books\/psychology-2e\/pages\/12-3-attitudes-and-persuasion","project":"","license":"cc-by","license_terms":"Download for free at https:\/\/openstax.org\/books\/psychology-2e\/pages\/1-introduction"}],"internal_book_links":[],"video_content":null,"cc_video_embed_content":{"cc_scripts":"","media_targets":[]},"try_it_collection":null,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/content.one.lumenlearning.com\/introductiontopsychology\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/596"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/content.one.lumenlearning.com\/introductiontopsychology\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/content.one.lumenlearning.com\/introductiontopsychology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/chapter"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/content.one.lumenlearning.com\/introductiontopsychology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/20"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/content.one.lumenlearning.com\/introductiontopsychology\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/596\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7356,"href":"https:\/\/content.one.lumenlearning.com\/introductiontopsychology\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/596\/revisions\/7356"}],"part":[{"href":"https:\/\/content.one.lumenlearning.com\/introductiontopsychology\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/parts\/585"}],"metadata":[{"href":"https:\/\/content.one.lumenlearning.com\/introductiontopsychology\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/596\/metadata\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/content.one.lumenlearning.com\/introductiontopsychology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=596"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"chapter-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/content.one.lumenlearning.com\/introductiontopsychology\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapter-type?post=596"},{"taxonomy":"contributor","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/content.one.lumenlearning.com\/introductiontopsychology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/contributor?post=596"},{"taxonomy":"license","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/content.one.lumenlearning.com\/introductiontopsychology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/license?post=596"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}