Encyclopedia of Sociology

ATTITUDES

example, consider the effect of mood on attitude
change. Assuming that happy people are more
open to new information, one might predict that
persuasive messages would lead to greater attitude
change in happy persons than in sad ones. Howev-
er, research indicates that happy people spend less
time processing persuasive messages than persons
in neutral moods, and so may be less influenced by
them. The hedonic contingency hypothesis states
that the effect of mood depends upon the hedonic
tone of the message. Happy people want to main-
tain their happy mood, so they are likely to scruti-
nize and process happy messages but not sad ones.
Sad people often want to change their mood, and
most messages will improve it, so their processing
is not affected by messages’ hedonic tone. The
results of two experiments support the hypothesis
(Wegener, Petty, and Smith 1995). Thus, the effect
of mood on persuasion depends on whether the
message is uplifting or depressing.

ATTITUDE–BEHAVIOR RELATION

The attitude–behavior relation has been the focus
of considerable research since the early 1970s.
This research has identified a number of variables
that influence the extent to which one can predict
a person’s behavior from his or her attitudes.

Some of these variables involve the measure-
ment of the attitude and of the behavior. The
correspondence of the two measures is one such
variable: one can predict behavior more accurately
if the two measures are at the same level of speci-
ficity. An opinion poll can predict the outcome of
an election because there is high correspondence
between the attitude (’’Which candidate do you
prefer for mayor in next month’s election?’’) and
the behavior (voting for a candidate in that elec-
tion). The length of time between the measure of
attitude and the occurrence and measure of the
behavior is also an important variable. The shorter
the time, the stronger the relationship. The longer
the elapsed time, the more likely the person’s
attitude will change, although some attitudes are
stable over long periods, for example, twenty years.

The characteristics of the attitude also influ-
ence the degree to which one can predict behavior
from it. In order for an attitude to influence
behavior, it must be activated, that is, brought

from memory into conscious awareness. An atti-

tude is usually activated by a person’s exposure to

the attitude object. Attitudes vary in accessibility,

the ease with which they are activated. The more

accessible an attitude is, the more likely it is to

guide future behavior (Kraus 1995). Another vari-

able is the source of the attitude. Attitudes based

on direct experience with the object are more

predictive of behavior. The certainty or confi-

dence with which the person holds the attitude

also moderates the attitude–behavior relationship.

The attitude–behavior relation is also influ-

enced by situational constraints—the social norms

governing behavior in a situation. An attitude is

more likely to be expressed in behavior when the

behavior is consistent with these norms.

An important attempt to specify the relation-

ship between attitude and behavior is the theory of

reasoned action, developed by Fishbein and Ajzen

(1975). According to this theory, behavior is deter-

mined by behavioral intention. Behavioral inten-

tion is determined by two factors: attitude and

subjective norm. Attitude is one’s beliefs about the

likely consequences of the behavior and one’s

evaluation—positive or negative—of each of those

outcomes. Subjective norm is the person’s belief

about other important persons’ or groups’ reac-

tions to the behavior and the person’s motivation

to comply with the expectations of each. One of

the strengths of the theory is this precise specifica-

tion of the influences on behavioral intention. It is

possible to measure quantitatively each of the four

components (likely consequences, evaluation, likely

reactions, motivation to comply) and use these to

make precise predictions of behavior. Many em-

pirical studies report results consistent with such

predictions. The theory applies primarily to behav-

ior that is under conscious, volitional control.

On the other hand, researchers have shown

that attitudes can affect behavior without being

brought into conscious awareness (Bargh 1996).

Attitudes toward objects influence our judgments

and behavior toward those objects without con-

scious awareness or intent. Stereotypes of social

groups are often activated automatically, as soon

as an individual is perceived as a member of the

group. Automatic processing is more likely when

the individual experiences information overload,

time pressures, or is not interested in engaging in

effortful processing.