7125 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Learning, Observational Learning, Classical Conditioning
21 Jun 2018
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Lecture 4
Attitudes and persuasion
- Attitude
oEvaluation of oneself, other people, issues etc with some degree of favour or
disfavour
oABC model
Affect
How we feel about it
Don’t like smoking
Behaviour
Our behaviour
Wont smoke
Cognition
What we believe about something
Smoking gives cancer
oThey are relatively permanent
oAbout socially significant things
oGeneralizable and abstract
Across a whole range of behaviours
Functional
Serve a purpose
Ie choice to engage in behaviour such as smoking
- Attitude formation
oMere exposure effect
oNumber of times exposed to an object influences evaluation of object
oDoesn’t happen if stimulus initially disliked
oAssociative learning
Classical conditioning
US becomes associated with CS – produces conditioned response
Operant conditioning – attitudes can be shaped by reinforcers and punishers
Observational learning – modelling, influence of media
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oSelf perception theory (Bem, 1965)
We infer out attitudes from our freely chosen behaviour
Occurs when attitudes are weak, newly formed, ambiguous
Facial feedback hypothesis (strack, martin and stepper, 1988)
Hold pen in mouth: when smiling position: found cartoons funnier
than when in frowning position
- Measuring attitudes
oSelf report questionnaires common
Likerts method
Construct series of attitude statements
Respondents indicate level of agreement on scale
Sum across all answers
Strongly agree – strongly disagree
Social desirability bias
But easy to target many people
oPhysiological measures
Eg measure heart rate in presence of attitude object
oBehavioural measures
Facial expressions, non verbal behaviour
Action clues
Lost letter technique
Letters left around; looked at how many people returned the letters
Ie if about communism: pro communism = return letter
oBogus pipeline technique
Participants told they are being monitored by a lie detector
oImplicit measures
Language use
Operates at unconscious attitude
Priming
Implicit association test (IAT) – reaction time test to measure automatic
attitudes
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Look at stimuli – and pair with pos or negative words etc
Indicates implicit bias: more automatic and unconscious
- Problems with measuring attitudes
oSocial desirability – can overcome using bogus pipeline, physiological or implicit
oAcquiescent responses
oStability over time and situations
oDo behaviours reflect attitudes
- Attitudes and behaviour
oLaPiere (1934)
1/250 hotels/restaurants refused service to a Chinese couple
Subsequent letter asking if they would serve Chinese customers: 92% said
they’d refuse service
Generally attitudes aren’t great predictor on their own
oDeterminants of attitude behaviour relationship
Specificity
Self awareness
Public: look towards others
Private: look within: more consistent with own beliefs – attitudes to
predict behaviour
Accessibility
Attitudes that come to mind quicker: more predictive of behaviour
Strength
More strength = more influence on behaviour
- Theory of reasoned action
o(Ajzen and Fishbein)
oAttitudes = beliefs (cognitive component) x evaluations (how you feel about it)
oSubjective norms = perceive expectations of significant others x motivation to
conform to those expectations
oBehavioural intention – intention to act
oBehaviour – action performed
oRevised to become
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Document Summary
Attitude: evaluation of oneself, other people, issues etc with some degree of favour or disfavour, abc model. Smoking gives cancer: they are relatively permanent, about socially significant things, generalizable and abstract. Ie choice to engage in behaviour such as smoking. Attitude formation: mere exposure effect, number of times exposed to an object influences evaluation of object, doesn"t happen if stimulus initially disliked, associative learning. Us becomes associated with cs produces conditioned response. Operant conditioning attitudes can be shaped by reinforcers and punishers. Observational learning modelling, influence of media: self perception theory (bem, 1965) We infer out attitudes from our freely chosen behaviour. Occurs when attitudes are weak, newly formed, ambiguous. Facial feedback hypothesis (strack, martin and stepper, 1988) Hold pen in mouth: when smiling position: found cartoons funnier than when in frowning position. Measuring attitudes: self report questionnaires common. But easy to target many people: physiological measures. Eg measure heart rate in presence of attitude object: behavioural measures.
