MAP603_Social Psychology

Interpersonal Attraction 145  Obese women often develop strong social skills.  They overcome prejudices of others. The correlation between fatness and obesity is also influenced by cultural factors. In USA, there is prejudice against fatness. Whereas, in Mexico, there is much less concern about weight and a less negative reaction to those who are overweight. Similarly, antifat prejudice is found to be stronger in individualistic (USA, Europe, etc.) cultures than in collectivist cultures (India, Asian Countries, etc.) (iii) Behavioural Clues and Attractiveness: It has also been found that many behavioural characteristics influence one’s perception of attractiveness. Dominance: Research studies have shown that men who have a dominant style (competitive, authoritative) are preferred and perceived as attractive as compared to men who are submissive (looking downward, nodding in agreement, etc.). However, Jensen Campbell et. al., (1995) have found that male dominance is not related to attraction and women prefer men who have prosocial tendencies. Masculinity: It has also been found that a man who fits a traditional masculine role is liked better than a less masculine man. Competitiveness: Reiskind and Wilson (1982) found that competitive men are liked better than non-competitive men. With respect to competitiveness it has been found that women and men are liked if they express goal competitiveness (doing their best to win and attain a goal) but not if they express interpersonal competitiveness (trying to do better than others in order to beat them). (iv) Concern About one’s Appearance: Appearance-Rejection Sensitivity: Concern about one’s appearance is also related to interpersonal attraction. Most people experience appearance- rejection sensitivity, which can be defined as worry about one’s appearance and the fear that others may snub them because they do not quite measure up on this dimension. Individuals who score high on the appearance-rejection sensitivity scale react much more negatively to experiences that threaten their confidence in their own appearance. Thus, individuals differ in CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

146 Social Psychology their concern that they will be rejected by others because of their appearance, and people high in such concern often feel rejected by others and experience reduced self-esteem. (v) Other Characteristics: A large number of research studies have shown that many specific characteristics of an individual influence liking for him/her. Stein and Nemeroff (1995) found that interpersonal judgements are influenced by what a person eats. With all other background data the same (weight, height physical fitness, etc.), research participants received information about a man or women who supposedly ate either “good food” (such as oranges, salad, whole-wheat bread, and chicken) or “bad food” (such as steak, hamburgers, French fries, doughnuts, and doublefudge sundaes). The participants rated the “good food” eaters as morally superior, more attractive, more likeable, more feminine, and less masculine than the “bad food” eaters. Hasarat and Hutchison (1993) found that when the same stimulus persons are presented wearing or not wearing glasses, both men and women are perceived as more attractive without glasses than with them. It has been found that our perception about a target person being attractive is influenced by the following factors.  Clothing  Grooming  Disabilities  What a person eats  Eye glasses  Person’s first name Many behavioural characteristics have also been found to be closely related to perception of attractiveness. Some important findings, from different research studies, with respect to this issue are as follows:  A person who has a youthful walking style elicits a more positive response than one who walks in an elderly style, regardless of gender or actual age. CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

Interpersonal Attraction 147  An individual with a firm handshake is perceived as extrovert and emotionally expressive.  A positive response is also evoked by expressive, animated behaviour, by laughter and by students who actively participate in class discussions rather than who remain quiet.  Actions that suggest arrogance elicit more negative reactions.  A person who appears modest is perceived to be more attractive and liked better as compared to others.  Angry individuals as compared to sad individuals are perceived to be more competitive.  Consistency in an individual’s behaviour is more liked and appreciated.  Immoral actions by someone who otherwise behaves morally is judged more negatively than the same act by someone who generally behaves in a less moral manner. Thus, from the foregoing discussion we can conclude that in addition to attractiveness many other observable characteristics influence initial interpersonal evaluations. These include the following:  Physique  Behavioural style  Food preferences  First names  Other superficial characteristics. 7.5 Factors Based On Interacting with Others: Similarity and Mutual Liking As we interact with others, some more factors play an important role in influencing interpersonal attraction. Two such factors are Similarity and Mutual Liking. Similarity: Birds of a Feather Actually Do Flock Together: Similarity is one of the very important factors that influence attraction. Since the days of Aristotle, it has been observed that CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

148 Social Psychology people like those who agree with them and dislike those who disagree. Scholars such as Spinoza, Samuel Johnson, Sir Francis Galton and Hunt (1935) have all emphasized the role of similarity in interpersonal attraction, especially in the formation of friendship and marital relationships. Sir Francis Galton obtained correlation data on married couples, indicating that spouses resembled one another in many respects. Additional correlation studies have demonstrated that friends and spouses expressed greater than chance degree of similarity. Similarly, very early Newcomb (1956) found that similar attitudes predicted subsequent liking between students. Similarity-Dissimilarity: A Consistent Predictor of Attraction: Similarity- Dissimilarity effect refers to the consistent findings that people respond positively to indications that another person is similar to themselves and negatively to indications that another person is dissimilar to themselves. Attitude similarity can be defined, as the extent to which two individuals share the same attitudes about a range of topics. In practice attitude similarity also includes similarity of beliefs values and interests. The exact role that similarity plays in interpersonal attraction has not been specified. Similarity may play a greater role during the beginning of a relationship than in a more developed one. Perhaps, it serves to get people together, but as relationship continues, its future may come to depend less on similarities than on other factors such as common goals. The role of similarity in attraction appears to be different in different situations. Whether or not similarity enhanced attraction depends for, e.g., (i) on the type of similarity (ii) on the desirability of traits involved (iii) on the type of relationship involved and (iv) perhaps, on the stage of relationship. Research studies have clearly demonstrated that similarity leads to attraction. Correlational studies of the attitudes of actual friends and romantic partners and experimental investigations in the laboratory have firmly established cause effect relationship between similarity and attractiveness. The similarity attractiveness effects are very powerful and consistent and are CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

Interpersonal Attraction 149 characteristic of children and the elderly college students. The higher the proportion of similar views, the more person is liked, the lower the proportion of similarity the more he or she is disliked. Proportion of similar attitudes can be defined as the number of topics on which two individuals hold the same views divided by the total number of topics on which they compare their views. Schuster and Elderton (1906) carried out one of the earliest studies with respect to attraction and attitude similarity. He studied more than four hundred families and found that there were significant agreements between spouses about such topics as politics and religion. Newcomb and the Effect of Similarity on Attraction: Theodore Newcomb and his colleagues (1937) have carried out some classic studies on the relationship between attraction and attitude similarity. In their earlier research studies Newcomb and Svehla (1937) studied about 200 married couples and found that there was a high degree of similarity in attitudes of husbands and wife with respect to topics like communism, church, war, etc. In another study they examined the attitude similarity among younger couples as well as older couples. They found that the attitudinal similarity of younger couple was as great as that of older couples. In 1956 Newcomb conducted longitudinal investigation and he found that attitude similarity influences attraction. Newcomb found that the more agreements about important issues existed between two individuals, the more they liked each other. Newcomb explained the relationship between attraction and similarity in terms of balance theory. A large number of research studies (Byrne, 1961, Scachter, 1951, Smith, 1957) carried out in 1950s and early 1960s have conclusively demonstrated that greater the similarity, the greater the attraction. Byrne and Nelson (1965) have noted that there is a linear relationship between attraction and proportion of similar attitudes. They noted that the higher the proportion of similar attitudes expressed by one person, the more positive the attraction response of a second person. Our understanding of the similarity-attraction link has undergone considerable change during the last three decades. The general conclusion of the various research studies is as follows: CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

150 Social Psychology  Similarity in general is preferable to dissimilarity.  People tend to like others who are similar to themselves with respect to many attributes.  People prefer others who are similar to them in physical attractiveness.  Others are better liked if they are similar to oneself in sociability. Repulsion Hypothesis: Related to our discussion on similarity and attractiveness is the concept of repulsion hypothesis, which was suggested by Rosenbaum. According to Rosenbaum attitude similarity has no effect on attraction. Instead he hypothesized; people respond positively to all strangers and only begin to dislike them if dissimilar attitudes are expressed. This concept is called as repulsion hypothesis. In other words repulsion hypothesis is Rosenbaum’s proposal that attraction is not enhanced by similar attitudes; instead, people initially respond positively to others but are repulsed by the discovery of dissimilar attitudes. In several investigations, Rosenbaum was able to demonstrate that while similar attitudes did not have a positive effect on attraction; dissimilar attitudes did have a negative effect. The new element in Rosenbaum’s research that produced such results was that he described as a “no information control conditions”. For, e.g., if subjects are shown photograph of a fellow student (no information) and told to indicate how much this person is liked, attraction is not greater when subjects are also told that this stranger holds attitudes similar to theirs. If that person is described as holding dissimilar attitudes then attraction decreases. In conclusion, we can state that though Rosenbaum’s repulsion hypothesis predicts that attraction is influenced only by dissimilar attitudes and not by similar ones, research, however, does not confirm this prediction. Research studies carried out by Smeaton, Byrne and Murnen (1989) has revealed that the repulsion hypothesis was found to be incorrect and proportion hypothesis was confirmed. Explaining the Effect of Similarity-Dissimilarity on Attraction, i.e., Why Similarity Leads to Attraction? The following are some of the common explanations as to why similar and dissimilar attitude leads to attraction. CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

Interpersonal Attraction 151 1. Balance Theory: One of the most important explanations of similarity leading to attraction is provided by balance theory given by Newcomb (1961) and Heider (1958). According to balance theory individuals organize their likes and dislikes cognitively in a symmetrical arrangement that results in balance. Balance is created when two people like each other and agree about something. When they like each other and disagree there is imbalance and this unpleasant state motivates each individual to do something to restore the balance. We restore balance by becoming similar to others. Thus, according to balance theory we either prefer similar individuals or become similar to them if we have to stabilize our relationship. 2. Social Comparison Theory: This theory was given by Festinger (1954). It suggests that people compare themselves to others because, for many domains and attributes, there is no objective yardstick with which to evaluate the self, so we compare ourselves to others to gain this information. According to this theory we compare our attitudes and beliefs with those of others because the only way we can evaluate our accuracy and normality is by finding that other people agree with us. 3. Consensual Validation: It can be defined as the perceived “validation” of one’s views about any aspect of the world that is provided whenever someone else holds the same views. According to this view attitude similarity leads to attraction because it confirms to one’s judgement about the world. When we meet people who are similar to us we are happy because we are assured that there is some -one in this world who shares our views, ideas, attitudes, etc., and that we are not alone and our views are not deviant views. Attitude similarity helps us to remove confusion and uncertainty. A stranger who helps us to reduce uncertainty is liked more than one who adds to our confusion. 4. Adaptive Response or Evolution based on genetic explanation: Still another explanation of similarity leading to attractiveness has been provided by Rushton (1989). The socio-biological explanation of Rushton states that the people are somehow able to detect the genetic similarity of others and are programmed to prefer those who are most genetically similar to them. This is because people who are genetically similar to us offer us safety and security and ensure our survival. CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

152 Social Psychology Reciprocal Liking or Disliking: Liking those who like us: In order to move beyond being acquaintances or casual friends toward a closer relationship, two individuals need to express mutual liking and other mutual positive evaluations (reciprocity) either in words or overt acts. Reciprocal Liking or Reciprocity is an important factor in interpersonal attraction. It indicates that attraction is a two way process. If you like others it is necessary that others would also like you. If they do, then a reciprocal liking is created which strengthens the relationship. Lack of reciprocity may weaken interpersonal attraction. Thus, reciprocal liking states that we especially like other people who indicate that they like us. We dislike quite a bit those who dislike and negatively evaluate us. Though reciprocal liking can be easily expressed in words, often the first signs are non- verbal ones. For, e.g., when a female interacts positively with a male by maintaining eye contact, leaning toward him, and engaging in conversation, he tends to be attracted to her even if he knows that she has dissimilar attitudes. Almost everyone likes a positive evaluation from others and dislikes any indication of a negative judgment. Even if positive evaluation is inaccurate or is rather an obvious attempt at flattery, we are pleased to receive it. People respond negatively to negative evaluation, even when they are directed at someone else. Backrnan and Secord (1959) showed that if members of discussion groups are told that certain other group members liked them very much; these others were more likely to be chosen later when two person teams were formed. Research has repeatedly shown that people like almost anyone who evaluates them positively and dislike those who evaluate them negatively (Byrne, 1971). Even those who say positive things about someone else are liked better than those who have only negative things to say. (Folkes and Sears, 1980). Similar findings have been obtained by Curtis and Miller (1986), these researchers led some research participants to believe that a stranger liked them and others to believe that they were disliked by a stranger. Participants interacted with a fellow participant who was falsely identified as the stranger who had made the evaluation, and their behaviour was strongly influenced by whether they believed the other person had given a positive or a negative evaluation. Those who believed that they had been evaluated CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

Interpersonal Attraction 153 positively were more self-disclosing, expressed more positive attitudes, made more eye contact, and spoke in a warmer tone than those who believed the other person gave negative evaluations. Thus, from the above discussion we see that reciprocity is a basic element in establishing friendships. Even in a brief experiment, subjects who believed the other person liked them, engaged in more self-disclosure, expressed more positive attitudes and spoke in more positive tones than subjects who believed the other person disliked them. Such behaviour, in turn, led to reciprocal positive behaviour from other person. What we desire in others? One of the important issues with respect to reciprocal liking is as to what traits or characteristics would you desire that a perfect person such as your romantic partner or work group member must have. This question was answered by Cottrell, Neuberg and Li (2007) who began asking undergraduate students to “create an ideal person” and rating 31 positive characteristics in terms of how important it is for their ideal person to have. Included among the characteristics were:  Trustworthiness  Cooperativeness  Agreeableness (being kind, interpersonally warm)  Extraversion (outgoing, sociable)  Emotionally stable  Physical health and  Physical attractiveness Findings of their research indicated that trustworthiness and cooperativeness were viewed as most important traits followed by agreeableness and extra version. Social Psychological research has revealed that our liking or disliking are influenced by a number of factors, including our similarity to other people, their liking for us, their appearance, how frequently we interact with them and their possession of certain key traits. CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

154 Social Psychology 7.6 Summary Interpersonal attraction deals with forming close, long term intimate relationship with some one whom truly love. It is the evaluation one person makes of another. It is the attraction between people ,which leads to friendships and romantic relationships. Our understanding of the similarity-attraction link has undergone considerable change during the last three decades. The general conclusion of the various research studies is as follows:  Similarity in general is preferable to dissimilarity.  People tend to like others who are similar to themselves with respect to many attributes.  People prefer others who are similar to them in physical attractiveness.  Others are better liked if they are similar to oneself in sociability. There are various internal and external determinants of interpersonal attraction, along with similarity and mutual liking. 7.7 Key Words/Abbreviations  Interpersonal Attraction: Interpersonal attraction is related to how much we like, love, dislike, or hate someone.  Affiliate: The need to affiliate is basic need for our psychological well being just like hunger and thirst.  External determinants of attraction: Two important external determinants of attraction include proximity and observable characteristics including physical attractiveness.  Reciprocal Liking: Reciprocal Liking or Reciprocity is an important factor in interpersonal attraction.  Similarity: Similarity is one of the very important factors that influence attraction. Since the days of Aristotle, it has been observed that people like those who agree with them and dislike those who disagree. CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

Interpersonal Attraction 155 7.8 Learning Activity 1. In your interpersonal attractions with others, narrate your experience. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2. Has your interpersonal attraction been good or bad? Give reason. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7.9 Unit End Questions (MCQ and Descriptive) A. Descriptive Types Questions 1. What is interpersonal attraction? List the various theories on Interpersonal Attraction. 2. Explain the internal determinants of interpersonal attraction with relevant examples. 3. Explain the various external determinants of interpersonal attraction. Or Discuss how proximity and Observable Characteristic influence Interaction Attraction. 4. Explain similarity and mutual liking , as factor based on interacting with others. 5. Why does repeated contact increase interpersonal attraction? 6. State some research studies with respect to residence and proximity. B. Multiple Choice/Objective Type Questions 1. _______ is related to how much we like, love on dislike , or hate someone. (a) Perception (b) Attraction (c) Interpersonal attraction 2. The need to affiliate and the basic role of affect are the ________ determinants of interpersonal attraction (a) Internal (b) External (c) None of the above CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

156 Social Psychology 3. Proximity and others observable characteristics are the ________ determinants of interpersonal attraction (a) Internal (b) External (c) None of the above Answers: 1. (c), 2. (a), 3. (b) 7.10 References 1. Dr. Vasant Kothari, (2018), “Social Psychology”, Spring Season Publication. 2. Braj Kumar Mishra, (2016), “Psychology The study Human Behaviour”, PHI. 3. www.sciencedirect.com/topics/neuroscience/interpersonal-attraction 4. Paul F. Secord, Carl W. Backman,”Social Psychology”, 2nd ed., 1974, McGraw-Hill. 5. John R., Eiser, Richard, J., Eiser, “Social Psychology: Attitudes, Cognition and social Behaviour”, 1980, McGraw-Hill. CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

UNIT 8 ATTITUDES Structure: 8.0 Learning Objectives 8.1 Introduction 8.2 Meaning of Attitudes 8.3 Components of Attitudes 8.4 Formation of Attitudes 8.5 Summary 8.6 Key Words/Abbreviations 8.7 Learning Activity 8.8 Unit End Questions (MCQ and Descriptive) 8.9 References 8.0 Learning Objectives After studying this unit, you will be able to:  Explain the meaning of attitudes.  Discuss components of attitudes.  Analyse formation of attitudes . CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

158 Social Psychology 8.1 Introduction Attitude is a behaviour and thought of individual in social psychology. It is formed by conditional or unconditional situation faced by an individual. The formation of attitude is due to thought and feelings about others status, grade etc. An individual tested with IAT for his attitude. Every individual has positive, negative, ambivalent attitude. So, it is also important to note that once attitude is formed then it is difficult to change. 8.2 Meaning of Attitudes Attitudes are important components of social behaviour and thought. Allport has called attitude as one of the most central concepts of Social Psychology. Definitions of Attitude: There are many definitions of attitudes. Some of the most common are as follows: 1. Attitude is a term used to refer to people’s evaluation of virtually every aspect of their social world. An attitude is a tendency to respond positively (favourably) or negatively (unfavourably) to certain people, objects or situations. In other words it is a tendency to react emotionally in one direction or another. 2. “Attitudes are general evaluations people make about themselves, other persons, objects or issues”. 3. “Attitudes are enduring mental representations of various features of the social or physical world. They are acquired through experience and exert a direct influence on subsequent behaviour”. 4. “Danial Katz and Ezra Stotland has defined attitude as “an individual’s tendency or predisposition to evaluate an object or a symbol of that object in certain ways.” 8.3 Components of Attitudes From the above definitions it can be seen that an attitude is composed of three aspects and these components are mutually dependent. These three components are as follows: CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

Attitudes 159 (a) Cognitive Aspect: Cognitive aspect refers to thoughts beliefs and factual information of the object. (b) Affective Aspect: Affective aspects refers to emotions and feelings. (c) Connative Aspect: Connative aspect refers to action tendencies and behavioural component. Thus, Attitude has been defined as relatively lasting clusters of feelings, beliefs and behaviour tendencies directed towards specific persons, ideas, objects or groups. Attitudes are limited. They are hypothetical construct. They cannot be directly observed. They could only be inferred on the basis of observation or observable responses. Attitudes are sometimes defined as Conditioned Emotional Responses (C.E.R.). They are learned processes and not innate tendencies. They can be learned classically or operationally. Characteristic Features of Attitudes: Some important points with respect to attitudes that are worth noting are as follows:  Some attitudes are quite stable and resistant to change, while others may be unstable and show considerable variability depending upon the situation.  We may hold some attitudes with great certainty, while other attitudes may be relatively unclear or uncertain.  The study of attitude is central to the field of Social Psychology because they are capable of colouring virtually every aspect of our experience.  Attitudes can influence our thoughts, even if they are not always reflected in our overt behaviour.  Attitudes are of two types: (a) Explicit Attitudes: Which can be defined as consciously accessible attitudes that are controllable and easy to report. (b) Implicit Attitudes: Unconscious Associations between objects and evaluative responses. CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

160 Social Psychology  Social Psychologists can learn about people’s attitudes about many objects from their conscious reports of the thoughts and feelings they have about them. We can also learn about an individual’s implicit attitude through a test called Implicit Association Test (IAT). The IAT is based on the degree of readiness with which we may associate various social objects with positive or negative descriptive words.  Research studies have revealed that attitudes often affect our behaviour. This is especially likely to be true when attitudes are strong and accessible. Because attitudes influence behaviour, knowing something about them can help us to predict people’s overt actions in a wide range of contexts.  Attitude has three different dimensions. They can be positive, negative or ambivalent. On very many issues we may not have clear cut positive or negative attitudes. Some times we may behave very positively and at other times on the same subject/issue we can react very negatively. In other words we have ambivalent attitude. Attitude ambivalence refers to the fact that our evaluations of objects, issues, people, or events are not always uniformly positive or negative, on the contrary, these evaluations are often mixed, consisting of both positive and negative reactions.  It is also important to note that once attitudes are formed it is difficult to change. The study of attitudes is central to Social Psychology due to following reasons. (a) Attitudes strongly influence our social thought, even if they are not always reflected in our overt behaviour. The tendency to evaluate any stimuli (object, event, person, etc.,) as positive or negative is an important aspect of human functioning. This tendency is an initial step in our efforts to make sense out of the social world. Our tendency to evaluate any stimuli either as positive or negative occurs almost immediately and certainly before we attempt to understand the meaning of stimuli and/or integrate them with our previous experience. (b) Attitudes are also central to Social Psychology because attitudes influence our behaviour to a very great extent. For, e.g., if we hold a negative attitude towards a particular political party or a particular candidate then we are unlikely to vote for that particular CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

Attitudes 161 party and/or candidate. Since attitude influence our behaviour, a given attitude towards a particular person can also lead to formation of prejudice, stereotype, etc., and can influence our interpersonal interaction. 8.4 Formation of Attitudes Attitudes are not innate. They are learned through the process of social learning or through social comparison. Social learning influences the formation of attitudes. We learn attitudes by interacting with others or by merely observing other’s behaviour. Social learning occurs through the following processes. 1. Classical Conditioning 2. Instrumental Conditioning 3. Observational Learning 4. Social Comparison 5. Direct Experience We would discuss each of these briefly. 1. Classical Conditioning: It is learning based on association. When two stimuli occur together or in close proximity, they come to be associated with one another. When one stimulus regularly precedes another, the one that occurs first may soon become a signal for the one that occurs second. In other words, when the first stimulus is presented, individuals come to expect that the second will follow. As a result they may gradually demonstrate the same kind of reactions to the first stimulus as they did to the second, especially if the second stimulus is one that induces fairly strong reactions when encountered. This is the basic principle of classical conditioning. Classical Conditioning can be defined as a basic form of learning in which one stimulus, initially neutral, acquires the capacity to evoke reactions through repeated pairing with another stimulus. In other words, one stimulus becomes a signal for the presentation or occurrence of the other. CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

162 Social Psychology Two important concepts in classical conditioning are as follows: (a) Unconditioned Stimulus: It is that stimulus which evokes a positive or negative response without substantial learning. (b) Conditioned Stimulus: The stimulus that comes to stand for or signal a prior unconditioned stimulus. The exact method by which classical conditioning leads to attitude formation can best be understood with the help of an example. Let us imagine that a young child often sees his father - frown and criticize or show displeasure each time he meets members of a particular minority group. The child in the beginning is very much neutral towards members of this minority group. Their personal or physical characteristics have no effect on this child. The reactions (emotional, behavioural, etc.), that the father shows are disturbing to the child. Gradually the child also develops negative attitudes. In short, the child has developed a tendency to respond negatively to such persons to whom he was neutral in the beginning. Such effective reactions form the core of developing negative attitudes towards the members of this group. Large number of research studies has shown that attitudes towards initially neutral stimuli can be acquired through classical conditioning. Research work by Kronsnick et. al., (1992) has shown that attitudes can be influenced by subliminal conditioning i.e., classical conditioning that occurs in the absence of conscious awareness of the stimuli involved. Similarly, a research study by Cacioppo (1993) has also demonstrated that our attitudes can be shaped by subtle process of which we are largely unaware and which we cannot describe verbally. 2. Instrumental Conditioning: Instrumental conditioning influences attitude formation. Instrumental conditioning it was pioneered by Edward Lee Thorndike and B.F. Skinner. The term operant conditioning was used by B.F. Skinner to refer to instrumental conditioning. According to this form of learning, rewards and punishments plays an important role in influencing formation of attitudes. Behaviours that are followed by positive outcomes are strengthened and tend to be repeated. In contrast, behaviours that are followed by negative outcomes are weakened or atleast suppressed. By rewarding CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

Attitudes 163 their children for expressing the “right” views, (the one that parent’s themselves favour) parents can strengthen or make the child learn a desired behaviour or attitude. 3. Observational Learning: It is also called as imitating or modelling and was pioneered by Albert Bandura and Walter Mischell. Very often we develop our attitudes just by observing others express a given attitude. If a child observes his father or other significant individual holding a particular attitude, a child will himself demonstrate the same attitude without being told to hold such an attitude. Thus, through modelling individuals develop specific views simply by observing the words or behaviours of others, even in the total absence of direct rewards for doing so. Thus, attitudes can be transmitted socially through observing other significant individuals express them. According to observational learning, mass media, especially television has considerable impact in shaping our attitudes. For, e.g., many people have acquired attitudes towards different types of costumes, hairstyles and cosmetics from watching various serials. Observational learning is different from classical conditioning and operant conditioning with respect to its views on reinforcement (rewards and punishments). According to both, classical conditioning and operant conditioning, reinforcement is necessary for learning to take place. Learning cannot occur in the absence of reinforcement. According to observational learning reinforcement is not necessary for learning, but it is essential for a given learning to be manifested in performance. According to observational learning, attitudes can be learnt even without reinforcement. However, for expressing a given attitude in behaviour reinforcement is very necessary. 4. Social Comparison: Festinger (1954) introduced the concept of social comparison. According to him social comparison can be defined as our tendency to compare ourselves with others in order to determine whether our view of social reality is or is not correct. If our views compare favourable with others, i.e., are similar to others we conclude that our ideas and attitudes are accurate. We often change our attitudes so that they are in agreement to or are somewhat similar to the attitudes that others hold.Very often the process of social comparison leads to the formation of new attitudes in us. For, e.g., we often form attitudes towards people, whom we have not met or towards objects CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

164 Social Psychology and events which we have never encountered, by just listening or hearing to what other significant people have to say about them. Research studies (Shaver, 1993) have also shown that hearing others state negative views might actually influence you to adopt similar attitudes without ever meeting a member of the group in question. Similarly, research study by Maio, Esses and Bell (1994) on Canadian visitors have demonstrated that often our attitudes are shaped by social information, coupled with our own desire to hold the views held by people who are significant to us in our lives. Thus, our attitudes are considerably shaped by reference groups, which can be defined as groups of people with whom we identify and whose opinions we value. It has been observed that when we identify with a group, we expect to be influenced by those others and in fact, are likely to take on the attitudes advocated by that group. It has been observed that hearing others whom we see as similar to ourselves state negative views about the group can lead us to adopt similar attitudes, without ever meeting any members of that group. In such case, attitudes are being shaped by our desire to be similar to people we like. 5. Direct Experience: It has been found that direct experience plays an important role in the formation of attitude. Very often our attitudes are formed through direct contact with attitude objects not simply borrowed from other persons through some form of social learning. Attitudes that are formed through direct experience are difficult to alter and are most strongly withheld. Research studies carried out by Fazio and his colleagues support the view that attitudes developed through direct contact with attitude object are stronger and more readily accessed within memory than attitudes developed without such contact. Thus, attitudes formed through direct experience often exert a stronger or more consistent effect upon overt actions than attitudes formed in the absence of such experience. 8.5 Summary Attitude is a tendency to respond positively or negatively to certain people, objects or situation. It is a tendency to react emotionally in one direction or another. The components of attitude are cognitive aspect, affective aspect and con-native aspect . CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

Attitudes 165 Attitudes are formed through (a) Classical conditioning (b) Instrumental conditioning (c) Observational Learning (d) Social Comparison and (e) Direct experience. 8.6 Key Words/Abbreviations  Attitude: Attitude is a term used to refer to people’s evaluation of cirtually every aspect of their social world.  Cognitive Aspect: Cognitive aspect refers to thoughts beliefs and factual information of the object.  Affective Aspect: Affective aspects refers to emotions and feelings.  Connative Aspect: Connative aspect refers to action tendencies and behavioural component.  Classical conditioning: When two stimuli occur together or in close proximity, they come to be associated with one another.  Instrumental conditioning: Instrumental conditioning influences attitude formation.  Observational learning: It is also called as imitating or modelling and was pioneered by Albert Bandura and Walter Mischell.  Social comparison: social comparison can be defined as our tendency to compare ourselves with others in order to determine whether our view of social reality is or is not correct.  Direct experience: direct experience plays an important role in the formation of attitude. CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

166 Social Psychology 8.7 Learning Activity 1. How will you explain the term “Attitudes”? ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2. How are attitudes formed? Express your opinion. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 8.8 Unit End Questions A. Descriptive Types Questions 1. What is attitude? How attitude is formed? 2. Describe the characteristics of attitude. 3. What are the components of attitude? 4. Discuss ‘The study of attitudes is central to Social Psychology’ ? B. Multiple Choice/Objective Type Questions 1. ______ means people’s evaluation of virtually every aspect of their . (a) Attitude (b) Attraction (c) Attribution 2. _______aspect refers to thought beliefs and factual information of the object. (a) cognitive (b) Affective (c) Con native 3. ______aspect refers to emotions and feelings. (a) Cognitive (b) Affective (c) Con native CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

Attitudes 167 4. ______aspect refers to action tendencies and behavioural component. (a) cognitive (b) Affective (c) Con native 5. ______ introduced the concept of social comparison (a) Fe stinger (b) Albert Bundura (c) Walter Mischell 6. _______was pioneered by Albert Bandura and Walter Mischell (a) Classical conditioning (b) Instrumental conditioning (c) Observational learning 7. _______ was pioneered by Edward Lee thorndike and B.F. Skinner. (a) Classical conditioning (b) Direct Experience (c) Instrumental conditioning Answers: 1. (a), 2. (a), 3. (b), 4. (c), 5. (a), 6. (c), 7. (c) 8.9 Reference 1. Magers D.W.(2010) Social Psychology, TMH 2. Richard J. Crisp and Rhiannon N. Turner (2017) Essential Social Psychology, sage Texts 3. www.google.co.in/search?tbm=bks&hl=en&q=components+of+attitude 4. Gerd Bohner, Michaela Wanke, “Attitudes and Attitude Change”, 2002, Psychology Press Ltd. 5. Nuttin, J.M., Nuttin, Jr., “ The illusion of Attitude Change: Towards Response Contagion Theory of Persuasion”, 1996, Leuven University Press. CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

UNIT 9 MEASUREMENT OF ATTITUDES AND THEORIES OF ATTITUDE CHANGE Structure: 9.0 Learning Objectives 9.1 Introduction 9.2 Measurement of Attitudes 9.3 Theories of Attitude Change 9.4 Summary 9.5 Key Words/Abbreviations 9.6 Learning Activity 9.7 Unit End Questions (MCQ & Descriptive) 9.8 References 9.0 Learning Objectives After studying this unit, you will be able to:  Discuss measurement of attitudes.  Evaluate the attitude change through different theories.  Analyse various theories based on attitudes CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

Measurement of Attitudes and Theories of Attitude Change 169 9.1 Introduction Attitude is a hypothetical construct. Attitude cannot be directly observed. It must be inferred from the behaviour of person. The behaviour of the person are used for assessing attitudes. There are different scales used to measure attitudes. It is a multidimensional concept. The three component of attitude are affective, behavioural and cognitive. Different theories of attitude change have been developed, to explain how the three component are organized and related and how different attitude are related to each other.This unit will help you, to understand and evaluate measurement of attitudes and evaluate the attitude change through different theories. 9.2 Measurement of Attitudes The scales used to measure attitudes are as follows: 1. Tharston’s Scales: A large number of statements, favourable and unfavourable are prepared in this scale. The statements may relate to any object, e.g. education, war, religion etc. A separate slip of paper is used for typing each of these statement. Then, the statements are placed in 11 piles. Placement of the most favourable statement is done in pile 1 and the most unfavourable in pile 11. Placement of other statements is done in between, depending in the degree of favourability or unfavourability. Then, the scale is presented to the respondent. Each respondent checks the statement with which he agrees. Then his attitude scored is calculated as the average (arithmetic average or median) of the statements checked by him. 2. Likert’s Scale: The Likert’s scale has five degrees for each statement: Strongly agree Agree Undecided (neutral) Disagree Strongly disagree 54 3 21 Each respondent is asked to check one of the five degrees on the scale, for every statement. The pointer show the degree of favourableness or unfavourbleness with the given statement. Likert’s scale is considered better than thurston’s scale, in every aspect, only one statement is required, which shows both positive and negative degrees. Likert’s scale is easier, factor and more reliable. CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

170 Social Psychology 3. Opinion Surveys: Opinion questionnaire provide information about specific factor like pay, working conditions etc. In an opinion questionnaire, a single response (yes or no) is obtained, for each question. A questionnaire can be developed to judge opinions of employees and to measure their attitudes. 4. Interviews: In interview method, attitudes of employer are known by conducting interviewer, by a consultant or an academician. The respondents are required to answer certain questions in a guided interview. The respondents are asked to express their views on specified issues, in a unguided interview. 9.3 Theories of Attitude Change 1. Cognitive Consistency Theories Research has generally concluded that people seek consistency among their attitudes and between their attitudes and their behaviour. This means that people seek to reconcile divergent attitudes and align their attitudes and behaviour so that they appear rational and consistent. When there is an inconsistency, forces are initiated to return the individual to an equilibrium state where attitudes and behaviour are again consistent. This can be done by either altering the attitude or the behaviour or by developing a rationalization for the discrepancy. The cognitive consistency theories are concerned with inconsistencies that arise between related beliefs, bits of knowledge and evaluation about an object or an issue. Though various consistency theories differ in several respects, all of them have a common object that is reducing the inconsistency and returning the individual to the equilibrium state. There are four important theories under this grouping: (A) Balance Theory: F. Heider provided the basic model of balance theory. The theory is basically concerned with the consistency in the judgment of people and/or issues that are linked by some form of relationship. According to this theory there are three elements in attitude formation: CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

Measurement of Attitudes and Theories of Attitude Change 171 Between these three elements two generic types of relationships are considered to exist: Sentiment relations and unit relations. The sentiment or linking relations include all form of sentiments or effect and the unit relations express the fact that two elements are perceived as belonging together. Both sentiment relations and the unit relations can be positive and negative. All these elements and relations are illustrated with the help of the following figure: In this three elements system balance exists if all three relations are positive or two relations are negative and one positive. There will be imbalance if all three relations are negative or if two relations are positive and one is negative. People tend to perceive others and objects linked to CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

172 Social Psychology them so that the system is balanced. This theory assumes that balanced states are stable and imbalanced states are unstable. When imbalanced state occurs, the psychological tension which is created motivates the person to restore the balance cognitively by changing the relations. Thus a person’s attitude towards an object depends on his attitudes towards a source who is linked with the object. Example: A person consistently argued that the quality of Indian cars is not up to that of the imported cars and that he would never own anything other than an imported car. His father gifts give him a latest model Maruti car. In this situation there are three elements the person, his father and the car. To bring the balance in this situation he will either change his negative relation with the Maruti car, he can ask his father to change his attitude and give him an imported car. Thus if that person starts saying that the Maruti car is not so bad, it means he has changed his relation and brought the balance in the situation. Criticism: The basic model given by Heider has been criticised on the following grounds: (i) The theory does not consider the degree of sentimental or unit relationships nor the relevance to the perceiver of the elements and relations. (ii) As a consequence, there are no degrees of balance or imbalance and it is not possible to make quantitative predictions about the degree of attitude change. Abelson’s Extension of Balance Model: In an extension of balance model, Abelson has suggested four methods in which a person can resolve imbalance in cognitive structures: (i) Denial (ii) Bolstering (iii) Differentiation (iv) Transcendence CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

Measurement of Attitudes and Theories of Attitude Change 173 DENIAL → Denying a relationship when imbalance occurs. BOLSTERING → Adding elements in the structure. In other words adding another issue in the main issue. DIFFERENTIATION → Splitting one of the elements into two elements that are related in opposite ways to other elements in the system and negatively related to each other. TRANSCENDENCE → Combining elements into larger, more super ordinate units from a balanced structures. These processes occur in hierarchy so that a person’s attempts to resolve imbalance in the ordering are discussed. The ordering is based on the assumption that the person will attempt the least effortful resolution first. This theory helps in understanding the role of persuasive communication and interpersonal attractiveness in changing the attitudes. (B) Congruity Theory: C.E. Os good and P.H. Tannenbaum have proposed the congruity theory of attitudes which is similar to the balance theory. Congruity theory focuses on the changes in the evaluation of a source and a concept that are linked by an associative or dissociative assertion. Congruity exists when a source and concept that are positively associated have exactly the same evaluations and when a source and concept that are negatively associated have exactly the opposite evaluations attached to them. Congruity is a stable state and incongruity is an unstable one. As a result, incongruity leads to a change of attitude. This theory states that how much change should be there in the attitudes towards the source and the concept so that incongruity is resolved. (C) Affective Cognitive Consistency Theory: M.I. Rosenberg has suggested the affective- cognitive consistency theory which is concerned with the consistency between a person’s overall attitude or effect towards an object or issue and his beliefs about its relationship to his more general values. This theory is concerned mainly with what happens within the individual when an attitude changes. It assumes that the relationship between the affective and cognitive components of the attitude change when an attitude is altered. CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

174 Social Psychology The theory postulates the following points: (i) A person’s effect towards or evaluation of the attitude object tends to be consistent- with this cognitive structural component. (ii) When there is inconsistency beyond a certain level of tolerance, the individual is motivated to reduce the inconsistency and thereby to change one or both components to make them more consistent. (iii) The theory, thus, suggests that changes in the affective component produce changes in the cognitive component in order to bring about consistency between the two. (iv) The theory also suggests that persuasive communication can also be used to change the attitudes, by revaluating the goals themselves. (D) Cognitive Dissonance Theory: Leon Festinger, in the late 1950s proposed the theory of cognitive dissonance. Dissonance means an inconsistency. Cognitive dissonance refers to any incompatibility that an individual might perceive between two or more of his attitudes or between his behaviour and attitudes. Festinger argued that any form of inconsistency is uncomfortable and that individuals will attempt to reduce the dissonance and hence the discomfort. Therefore, individuals will seek a stable state where there is a minimum of dissonance, because an individual cannot completely avoid dissonance. The desire to reduce dissonance is determined by three factors: (i) Importance of the elements creating the dissonance (ii) The degree of influence the individual believes he has over the elements. (iii) The rewards that may be involved in dissonance. If the elements creating the dissonance are relatively unimportant, the pressure to correct this imbalance will be low. But if the elements are important then a person will have to correct this imbalance. He can either change his behaviour, or he can change his dissonance, or he can change his attitude. Another choice can be to find out more consonant elements to outweigh the dissonant ones. CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

Measurement of Attitudes and Theories of Attitude Change 175 The degree of influence the individuals believe they have over the elements will have an impact on how they will react to the dissonance. If they perceive the dissonance to be an uncontrollable result, something over which they have no choice, they are less likely to be receptive to attitude change. While dissonance exists, it can be rationalized and justified. Rewards also influence the degree to which individuals are motivated to reduce dissonance. High rewards accompanying high dissonance tend to reduce the discomfort inherent in the dissonance because it increases the consistency side of the individual’s balance sheet. These factors suggest that just because individual experiences dissonance, they will not necessarily move directly toward consistency, that is, toward reduction of this dissonance. This theory helps to predict the propensity of an individual to engage in attitude and behavioural change, if individuals are required. For example, by the demands of their jobs to do or say things which contradict their personal attitude, they will tend to modify their attitude in order to make it compatible with the cognition of what they have said or done. Further, the greater the dissonance, after it has been moderated by the above mentioned factors, the greater the pressures to reduce it. 2. Functional Theory The functional theory considers how attitudes and efforts are related to the motivational structure of the individual. This theory focuses on two things: (i) The meaning of the influence situation in terms of both the kinds of motives that it arouses and (ii) The individual’s method of coping and achieving his goals. An understanding of the functions served by attitudes is important for attitude change procedures since a particular method may produce change in individuals whose attitudes serve one particular function, but may produce no change in individuals for whom the attitudes serve a different function. CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

176 Social Psychology The most prominent person who visualized functional theory is Katz and he suggested four functions of attitudes. However, Katz functional theory has not stimulated much research except for the work on changing ego defensive attitudes. Kelman has given another approach about the functional approach of attitudes. He has distinguished three processes of attitude formation and change: (i) Compliance (ii) Identification and (iii) Internalisation. This theory is directed towards the types of social relationships that occur in social influence situations. Compliance occurs when an attitude is formed or changed in order to gain a favourable impression from other person or group. Identification occurs when a person forms or changes his attitude because this adoption helps him establish or maintain a positive self defining relationship with the influencing agent. Internalization involves adopting an attitude because it is congruent with one’s overall value systems. This approach makes an important contribution towards an understanding of the conditions that influence the maintenance and stability of attitude change. 3. Social Judgment Theory The social judgment theory was originally formulated by Sherif and Hoveland. This theory attempts to explain how existing attitudes produce distortions of attitude related objects and how these judgments mediate attitude change. Thus, a person’s initial attitude towards an issue, serves as an anchor for the judgment of attitude related stimuli. The person’s initial attitude on an issue provides a point of reference against which he evaluates other opinions. These views can be considered in terms of attitudinal continuum and can be considered as comprised of latitudes. The latitude of acceptance, which is the range of opinions the individual CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

Measurement of Attitudes and Theories of Attitude Change 177 finds acceptable, encompasses the opinion that best characteristic his own stand. The attitude of rejection, which is the range of opinions the individual finds objectionable, encompasses the opinion he finds most objectionable. The attitude of non-commitment is the range of opinions that the person finds neither acceptable nor unacceptable. 9.4 Summary Measurement of attitudes can be done through Thurston’s Scale, Likert’s Scale, Opinion Surveys and Interviews. The theories of attitude change are: 1. Cognitive consistency theories (Balance theory, Congruity Theory and Consistency or Structural Theory and Cognitive Dissonance Theory). 2. Functional Theory 3. Social Judgement Theory 9.5 Key Words/Abbreviations  Thurston’s Scale: A large number of statements, favourable and unfavourable are prepared in his scale. The statements may relate to any object, e.g. Education, war, religion etc.  Likert’s Scale: The Likert’s scale has five degrees for each statement  Opinion Surveys: Opinion questionnaire provide information about specific factor like pay, working conditions etc.  Interviews: In interview method, attitudes of employer are known by conducting interviewer, by a consultant or an academician.  Cognitive Consistency Theories: he cognitive consistency theories are concerned with inconsistencies that arise between related beliefs, bits of knowledge and evaluation about an object or an issue.  Balance Theory: F. Heider provided the basic model of balance theory. CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

178 Social Psychology 9.6 Learning Activity 1. Explore the various theories of attitude change. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2. Explore the various measurement of attitudes. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 9.7 Unit End Questions (MCQ and Descriptive) A. Descriptive Types Questions 1. Explain measurement of attitude. 2. How are attitudes measured? 3. Explain in brief, the cognitive consistency theories. 4. Explain the balance theory. 5. Explain the congruity theory, consistency theory and congnitive dissonance theory in brief. 6. Explain the functional theory. 7. Explain the social judgement theory. B. Multiple Choice/Objective Type Questions 1. In _______ Scale a large number of statement, both favourable and unfavourable are prepared (a) Likert’s (b) Thurston’s (c) Dobler’s (d) none 2. ________ Scale has five degrees for each statement (a) Likert’s (b) Thurston’s (c) Keeyan’s (d) All of them CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

Measurement of Attitudes and Theories of Attitude Change 179 3. _______ theory attempts to explain how existing attitudes mediated change in attitudes (a) Functional (b) Social Judgement (c) Balance (d) Unfunctional 4. _________ theory is based on the relationship of attitudes and efforts to the motivation of a person (a) Functional (b) Social Judgement (c) Cognitive Dissonance (d) Cognitive 5. ________ theory is concerned with consistency in the judgement of people and issues that are linked by some form of relationship. (a) Congruity (b) Consistency (c) Balance (d) Unbalance 6. _______ theory focuses on change in the evaluation of a source and a concept which have an association or disassociative linkage (a) Consistency (b) Congruity (c) Balance (d) Functional Answers: 1. (b), 2. (a), 3. (b), 4 (a), 5. (c), 6. (b) 9.8 Reference 1. L.L. Thurston and E.J. Chare, 1949, “The Measurement of Attitude”, University of Chicago Press, Chicago. 2. Rensis Likert, 1952, “A Technique for measurement of Attitudes”, Archives of Psychology. 3. F. Heider, 1968, “The Psychology of International Relations”, John Wiley, New York. 4. R.P. Abelson, 1959, “Modes or Resolution of Belief Dilemmas”. Journal of conflict Resolution (3), pp. 343-352. CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

180 Social Psychology 5. C.E.Osgood and P.H. Tasnenbaum, 1955, “The Principle of Congruity in the Prediction of Attitude Change”, Psychological Review (62), pp. 42-55. 6. M.J. Rosenberg, 1960, “A Structural Theory of Attitude Dynamics”, Public Opinion Quarterly (24), pp. 319-340. 7. L. Festinger, 1957, “A Theory of Cognitive Disonance”, Harper & Row, New York. 8. H.C. Kelman, 1958, “Compliance, Identification and Internationalisation: Three Processer of Attitude Change”, Journal of conflict Resolution (21), pp.51-60. 9. Baron, R.A., Branscombe N. R. and Byne, D. 2008, “Social Psychology”, 12th ed., Pearson Education, New Delhi, Indian Subcontinent adoptation, 2009. 10. Franzoi S.L., 2003, “Social Psychology”, 3rd ed., Mc Graw Hill Co., New York. 11. Arun Kumar Singh, 2020, “Social Psychology”, Prentice Hall of India Learning Pvt. Ltd., Delhi. CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

UNIT 10 ATTRIBUTION Structure: 10.0 Learning Objectives 10.1 Introduction 10.2 Concept of Attribution 10.3 Types of Attribution 10.4 Theories and Models of Attribution 10.5 Bias and Errors in Attribution 10.6 Summary 10.7 Key Words/Abbreviations 10.8 Learning Activity 10.9 Unit End Questions (MCQ and Descriptive) 10.10 References 10.0 Learning Objectives After studying this unit, you will be able to:  Explain the concept of attribution.  Discuss the type of attribution.  Elaborate the theories and models of attribution.  Analyse the errors and bias in attribution. CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

182 Social Psychology 10.1 Introduction Humans are motivated to assign causes to their actions and behaviors. In social psychology, attribution is the process by which individuals explain the causes of behavior and events Background. Gestalt psychologist Fritz Heider is often described as the early-20th-century \"father of attribution theory\". In his 1920s dissertation, Heider addressed the problem of phenomenology: why do perceivers attribute the properties such as color to perceived objects, when those properties are mental constructs? Heider's answer that perceivers attribute that which they \"directly\" sense – vibrations in the air for instance – to an object they construe as causing those to sense data. \"Perceivers faced with sensory data thus see the perceptual object as 'out there', because they attribute the sensory data to their underlying causes in the world.\" Heider extended this idea to attributions about people: \"motives, intentions, sentiments ... the core processes which manifest themselves in overt behavior\". 10.2 Concept of Attribution Attribution has been a topic of interest for social psychologists since several decades. Attribution can be defined as a process through which we seek to identify the causes of other’s behavior and so gain knowledge of their stable traits and dispositions. In other words, through the process of attribution we come to know about the stable causes and permanent characteristics of individual’s behaviour and actions. Attributions answers “why” of other’s behaviour. In other words, Attribution refers to our efforts to understand the causes behind other’s behaviour and, on some occasions, the causes behind our behaviour, too. CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

Attribution 183 10.3 Types of Attribution 1. External External attribution, also called situational attribution, refers to interpreting someone's behavior as being caused by the situation that the individual is in. For example, if one's car tire is punctured, it may be attributed to a hole in the road; by making attributions to the poor condition of the highway, one can make sense of the event without any discomfort that it may in reality have been the result of their own bad driving. Ex. A child attributes their feelings to the weather outside their house; it is raining outside, because it is raining outside the child feels sad. 2. Internal Internal attribution, or dispositional attribution, refers to the process of assigning the cause of behavior to some internal characteristic, like ability and motivation, rather than to outside forces. This concept has overlap with the Locus of control, in which individuals feel they are personally responsible for everything that happens to them. Ex. A child attributes the weather to their feelings; the child is feeling sad, because the child is feeling sad it is raining outside. 10.4 Theories and Models of Attribution 1. Common sense Psychology From the book The Psychology of Interpersonal Relations (1958), Fritz Heider tried to explore the nature of interpersonal relationship, and espoused the concept of what he called \"common sense\" or \"naïve psychology\". In his theory, he believed that people observe, analyze, and explain behaviors with explanations. Although people have different kinds of explanations for the events of human behaviors, Heider found it is very useful to group explanation into two categories; Internal (personal) and external (situational) attributions. When an internal attribution is made, the cause of the given behavior is assigned to the individual's characteristics such as ability, personality, mood, efforts, attitudes, or disposition. When an external attribution is made, CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

184 Social Psychology the cause of the given behavior is assigned to the situation in which the behavior was seen such as the task, other people, or luck (that the individual producing the behavior did so because of the surrounding environment or the social situation). These two types lead to very different perceptions of the individual engaging in a behavior. 2. Correspondent Inference Correspondent inferences state that people make inferences about a person when their actions are freely chosen, are unexpected, and result in a small number of desirable effects. According to Edward E. Jones and Keith Davis' correspondent inference theory, people make correspondent inferences by reviewing the context of behavior. It describes how people try to find out individual's personal characteristics from the behavioral evidence. People make inferences on the basis of three factors; degree of choice, expectedness of behavior, and effects of someone's behaviors. For example, we believe we can make stronger assumptions about a man who gives half of his money to charity, than we can about one who gives $5 to charity. An average person would not want to donate as much as the first man because they would lose a lot of money. By donating half of his money, it is easier for someone to figure out what the first man's personality is like. The second factor, that affects correspondence of action and inferred characteristic, is the number of differences between the choices made and the previous alternatives. If there aren't many differences, the assumption made will match the action because it is easy to guess the important aspect between each choice. 3. Covariation Model The covariation model states that people attribute behavior to the factors that are present when a behavior occurs and absent when it does not. Thus, the theory assumes that people make causal attributions in a rational, logical fashion, and that they assign the cause of an action to the factor that co-varies most closely with that action. Harold Kelley's covariation model of attribution looks to three main types of information from which to make an attribution decision about an individual's behavior. The first is consensus information, or information on how other people in the same situation and with the same stimulus behave. The second is distinctive information, or how the individual responds to different stimuli. The third is consistency information, or how frequent the individual's behavior can be observed with similar stimulus but CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

Attribution 185 varied situations. From these three sources of affirmation observers make attribution decisions on the individual's behavior as either internal or external. There have been claims that people under- utilise consensus information, although there has been some dispute over this. There are several levels in the covariation model: high and low. Each of these levels influences the three covariation model criteria. High consensus is when many people can agree on an event or area of interest. Low consensus is when very few people can agree. High distinctiveness is when the event or area of interest is very unusual, whereas low distinctness is when the event or area of interest is fairly common. High consistency is when the event or area of interest continues for a length of time and low consistency is when the event or area of interest goes away quickly. 4. Three-dimensional model Bernard Weiner proposed that individuals have initial affective responses to the potential consequences of the intrinsic or extrinsic motives of the actor, which in turn influence future behavior. That is, a person's own perceptions or attributions as to why they succeeded or failed at an activity determine the amount of effort the person will engage in activities in the future. Weiner suggests that individuals exert their attribution search and cognitively evaluate casual properties on the behaviors they experience. When attributions lead to positive affect and high expectancy of future success, such attributions should result in greater willingness to approach to similar achievement tasks in the future than those attributions that produce negative affect and low expectancy of future success. Eventually, such effective and cognitive assessment influences future behavior when individuals encounter similar situations. Weiner's achievement attribution has three categories: 1. Stable Theory (stable and unstable) 2. Locus of Control (internal and external) 3. Controllability (controllable or uncontrollable) Stability influences individuals' expectancy about their future; control is related with individuals' persistence on mission; causality influences emotional responses to the outcome of task. CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

186 Social Psychology 10.5 Bias and Errors in Attribution While people strive to find reasons for behaviors, they fall into many traps of biases and errors. As Fritz Heider says, \"our perceptions of causality are often distorted by our needs and certain cognitive biases\". The following are examples of attributional biases. (a) Fundamental Attribution Error The fundamental attribution error describes the habit to misunderstand dispositional or personality-based explanations for behavior, rather than considering external factors. The fundamental attribution error is most visible when people explain and assume the behavior of others. For example, if a person is overweight, a person's first assumption might be that they have a problem with overeating or are lazy and not that they might have a medical reason for being heavier set. When evaluating others' behaviors, the situational context is often ignored in favor of assuming the disposition of the actor to be the cause of an observed behavior. This is because when a behavior occurs attention is most often focused on the person performing the behavior. Thus, the individual is more salient than the environment and dispositional attributions are made more often than situational attributions to explain the behavior of others. However, when evaluating one's own behavior, the situational factors are often exaggerated when there is a negative outcome while dispositional factors are exaggerated when there is a positive outcome. The core process assumptions of attitude construction models are mainstays of social cognition research and are not controversial—as long as we talk about \"judgment\". Once the particular judgment made can be thought of as a person's \"attitude\", however, construal assumptions elicit discomfort, presumably because they dispense with the intuitively appealing attitude concept. (b) Culture Bias Culture bias is when someone makes an assumption about the behavior of a person based on their cultural practices and beliefs. An example of culture bias is the dichotomy of \"individualistic\" and \"collectivistic cultures\". People in individualistcultures, generally Anglo- America and Anglo-Saxon European, are characterized as societies which value individualism, personal goals, and independence. People in collectivist cultures are thought to regard individuals CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

Attribution 187 as members of groups such as families, tribes, work units, and nations, and tend to value conformity and interdependence. In other words, working together and being involved as a group is more common in certain cultures that views each person as a part of the community. This cultural trait is common in Asia, traditional Native American societies, and Africa. Research shows that culture, either individualist or collectivist, affects how people make attributions. People from individualist cultures are more inclined to make fundamental-attribution error than people from collectivist cultures. Individualist cultures tend to attribute a person's behavior due to their internal factors whereas collectivist cultures tend to attribute a person's behavior to his external factors. Research suggests that individualist cultures engage in self-serving bias more than do collectivist cultures, i.e. individualist cultures tend to attribute success to internal factors and to attribute failure to external factors. In contrast, collectivist cultures engage in the opposite of self- serving bias i.e. self-effacing bias, which is: attributing success to external factors and blaming failure on internal factors (the individual). (c) Actor/Observer Difference People tend to attribute other people's behaviors to their dispositional factors while attributing own actions to situational factors. In the same situation, people's attribution can differ depending on their role as actor or observer. For example, when a person scores a low grade on a test, they find situational factors to justify the negative event such as saying that the teacher asked a question that he/she never went over in class. However, if another person scores poorly on a test, the person will attribute the results to internal factors such as laziness and inattentiveness in classes. The theory of the actor-observer bias was first developed by E. Jones and R. Nisbett in 1971, whose explanation for the effect was that when we observe other people, we tend to focus on the person, whereas when we are actors, our attention is focused towards situational factors. The actor/observer bias is used less frequently with people one knows well such as friends and family since one knows how his/her close friends and family will behave in certain situation, leading him/her to think more about the external factors rather than internal factors. CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

188 Social Psychology (d) Dispositional Attributions Dispositional attribution is a tendency to attribute people's behaviors to their dispositions; that is, to their personality, character, and ability. For example, when a normally pleasant waiter is being rude to his/her customer, the customer may assume he/she has a bad character. The customer, just by looking at the attitude that the waiter is giving him/her, instantly decides that the waiter is a bad person. The customer oversimplifies the situation by not taking into account all the unfortunate events that might have happened to the waiter which made him/her become rude at that moment. Therefore, the customer made dispositional attribution by attributing the waiter's behavior directly to his/her personality rather than considering situational factors that might have caused the whole \"rudeness\". (e) Self-serving Bias Self-serving bias is attributing dispositional and internal factors for success, while external and uncontrollable factors are used to explain the reason for failure. For example, if a person gets promoted, it is because of his/her ability and competence whereas if he/she does not get promoted, it is because his/her manager does not like him/her (external, uncontrollable factor). Originally, researchers assumed that self-serving bias is strongly related to the fact that people want to protect their self-esteem. However, an alternative information processing explanation is that when the outcomes match people's expectations, they make attributions to internal factors. For example, if you pass a test you believe it was because of your intelligence; when the outcome does not match their expectations, they make external attributions or excuses. Whereas if you fail a test, you would give an excuse saying that you did not have enough time to study. People also use defensive attribution to avoid feelings of vulnerability and to differentiate themselves from a victim of a tragic accident. An alternative version of the theory of self-serving bias states that the bias does not arise because people wish to protect their private self-esteem, but to protect their self-image (a self-presentational bias). This version of the theory would predict that people attribute their successes to situational factors, for fear that others will disapprove of them looking overly vain if they should attribute successes to themselves. For example, it is suggested that coming to believe that \"good things happen to good people and bad things happen to bad people\" will reduce feelings of vulnerability. This belief would have CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

Attribution 189 side-effects of blaming the victim even in tragic situations. When a mudslide destroys several houses in a rural neighborhood, a person living in a more urban setting might blame the victims for choosing to live in a certain area or not building a safer, stronger house. Another example of attributional bias is optimism bias in which most people believe positive events happen to them more often than to others and that negative events happen to them less often than to others. For example, smokers on average believe they are less likely to get lung cancer than other smokers. (f) Criticism Attribution theory has been criticised as being mechanistic and reductionist for assuming that people are rational, logical, and systematic thinkers. The fundamental attribution error, however, demonstrates that they are cognitive misers andmotivated tactician. It also fails to address the social, cultural, and historical factors that shape attributions of cause. This has been addressed extensively by discourse analysis, a branch of psychology that prefers to use qualitative methods including the use of language to understand psychological phenomena. The linguistic categorization theory for example demonstrates how language influences our attribution style. 10.6 Summary Attribution is the process through which the observer infers the causes of others behaviour. Attribution means our efforts to understand the causes of others behaviour and on some occasions, the causes of also our behaviour. The types of attribution are situational or external attribution and dispositional or internal attribution. The theories and models of attribution are common sense psychology, correspondent inference, covariaton model, and three dimensional model. The bias and errors is attribution are fundamental attribution error, culture bias, Actor - observer difference, dispositional attribution and self-serving bias. CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

190 Social Psychology 10.7 Key Words/Abbreviations  Attribution: Attribution refers to our efforts to understand the causes behind other’s behaviour and, on some occasions, the causes behind our behaviour, too.  External Attribution: External attribution, also called situational attribution, refers to interpreting someone's behavior as being caused by the situation that the individual is in.  Internal Attribution: Internal attribution, or dispositional attribution, refers to the process of assigning the cause of behavior to some internal characteristic, like ability and motivation, rather than to outside forces.  Naïve psychology: It means that people observe, analyze, and explain behaviors with explanations.  Correspondent inference: According to Edward E. Jones and Keith Davis' correspondent inference theory, people make correspondent inferences by reviewing the context of behavior.  Covariation model: The covariation model states that people attribute behavior to the factors that are present when a behavior occurs and absent when it does not.  Three dimensional model: Bernard Weiner proposed that individuals have initial affective responses to the potential consequences of the intrinsic or extrinsic motives of the actor, which in turn influence future behavior.  Fundamental attribution error: The fundamental attribution error describes the habit to misunderstand dispositional or personality-based explanations for behavior, rather than considering external factors.  Culture bias: Culture bias is when someone makes an assumption about the behavior of a person based on their cultural practices and beliefs.  Actor/Observer difference: People tend to attribute other people's behaviors to their dispositional factors while attributing own actions to situational factors. In the same situation, people's attribution can differ depending on their role as actor or observer. CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

Attribution 191  Dispositional attribution: Dispositional attribution is a tendency to attribute people's behaviors to their dispositions; that is, to their personality, character, and ability.  Self-serving bias: Self-serving bias is attributing dispositional and internal factors for success, while external and uncontrollable factors are used to explain the reason for failure. 10.8 Learning Activity 1. Attempt to understand the cause of your friends or neighbour behaviour. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2. Explore the various theories of attribution and write in your own words. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 10.9 Unit End Questions (MCQ and Descriptive) A. Descriptive Types Questions 1. What is attribution? 2. Explain the types of attribution. 3. Explain the theories and models of attribution. 4. Explain the bias and errors in attribution. B. Multiple Choice/Objective Type Questions 1. _________ answer ‘why’ of other behaviour (a) Attitude (b) Attribute (c) Attribution (d) Aspiration 2. _________ understands the causes of other’s behaviour and also our behaviour. (a) Attribution (b) Attitude (c) Attraction (d) Aspiration CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

192 Social Psychology 3. ____________ is when the observer attributes other’s behaviour in terms of the internal state of the person who did it. (a) Dispositional attribution (b) Situational attribution. (c) Positional attribution (d) Attribution 4. ____________ is when the observer attributes other’s behaviour in terms of person’s situation or environment. (a) Situational attribution (b) Dispositional attribution (d) Positional Attribution (d) Attribution 5. _____________ theory proposed that the persons are naive psychologist. (a) Bernard Weiner (b) Harold Kelley’s (c) Jones Davis (d) Fritz Heiders 6. In __________ theory people make correspondent inferences by reviewing the context of behaviour. (a) Bernard Weiner (b) Harold Kelley’s (c) Jones and Davis (d) Fritz Heider’s 7. _________ covariation model of attribution looks to three main types of information from which to make an attribution decision about an individuals behaviour. (a) Bernard Weiner (b) Harold Kelly’s (c) Fritz Heider (d) Jones and Davis 8. ____________ is attributing dispositional and internal factor for success. (a) Self-serving bias (b) Culture bias (c) Actor/observer difference (d) Dispositional attribution Answers: 1. (c), 2. (a), 3. (a), 4. (a), 5. (d), 6. (c), 7. (b), 8. (a) CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

Attribution 193 10.10 References 1. Sanderson, Catherine (2010). Social Psychology. John Wiley & Sons. p. 112. ISBN 978- 0-471-25026-5. 2. Heider. F (1958). The Psychology of Interpersonal Relations. New York: John Wiley. ISBN 9780898592825. 3. Myers, David G. (2010). Social Psychology (10th ed.). New York, NY. p. 104. ISBN 978-0-07-337066-8.OCLC 667213323. 4. McLeod, Saul. \"Attribution Theory\". Simply Psychology. Retrieved 27 April 2017. 5. Weiner, B. (1992). Human Motivation: Metaphors, Theories and Research. Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications. ISBN 978-0-7619-0491-5. 6. Peterson, Christopher; Semmel, Amy; von Baeyer, Carl; Abramson, Lyn Y.; Metalsky, Gerald I.; Seligman, Martin E. P. (September 1982). \"The attributional Style Questionnaire\". Cognitive Therapy and Research. 6 (3): 287–299. doi:10.1007/BF01173577. 7. Gordon, L. M.; Graham, S. (2006). \"Attribution theory\". The Encyclopedia of Human Development. 1. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications. Pp. 142–144. ISBN 978-1-4129- 0475-9. 8. Aarts, Bas (July 2006). \"Conceptions of categorization in the history of linguistics\". Language Sciences. 28 (4): 361–385.doi:10.1016/j.langsci.2005.10.001. CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)

UNIT 11 THEORIES OF ATTRIBUTION Structure: 11.0 Learning Objectives 11.1 Introduction 11.2 Theories of Attribution 11.3 Kelly 11.4 Weiner 11.5 Jones and Davis 11.6 Summary 11.7 Key Words/Abbreviations 11.8 Learning Activity 11.9 Unit end questions (MCQ and descriptive ) 11.10 References 11.0 Learning Objectives After studying this unit, you will be able to:  Evaluate theories of attribution.  Discuss the theory of correspondent Inference.  Explain the Kelley’s theory of Casual attribution  Explain the Bernard Weiner theory of attribution CU IDOL SELF LEARNING MATERIAL (SLM)