7-1
Chapter 7
Attitudes
7-2
Attitudes
• A lasting, general evaluation of people
(including oneself), objects, advertisements,
or issues.
• Anything toward which one has an attitude is
called an Attitude Object.
• An attitude is:
– Lasting because it tends to endure over time.
– General because it applies to more than a
momentary event.
• Attitudes help us make all forms of choices
such as:
– Very product-specific behaviors, and
– More general consumption-related behaviors.
7-3
The Functions of Attitudes
By Identifying the Dominant Function a Product Serves for
Consumers - What Benefits it Provides - Marketers Can
Emphasize These Benefits in Communications & Packaging.
Utilitarian Value-Expressive
Reward and Consumer’s Values
Punishment or Self-Concept
Attitude
Functions
Knowledge Ego-Defensive
Need for Meaning, Protect Person
Order & Structure From Threats
7-4
The ABC Model of Attitudes
Affect
Way a Consumer
Feels
Behavior
Person’s Intentions Components of an
to Do Attitude
Cognition
Consumer’s
Beliefs
7-5
Hierarchies of Effects
Standard Learning Hierarchy ATTITUDE
Based on
Cognitive
Beliefs Affect Behavior Information
Processing
Low-Involvement Hierarchy
ATTITUDE
Based on
Beliefs Behavior Affect Behavioral
Learning
Processes
Experiential Hierarchy
ATTITUDE
Based on
Affect Behavior Beliefs Hedonic
Consumptio
n
7-6
Attitudes Toward the
Advertisement
The Attitude Toward the Advertisement is Defined
as a Predisposition to Respond in a Favorable or
Unfavorable Manner to a Particular Advertising
Stimulus During a Particular Exposure Occasion.
Determinants Include:
Attitude Degree to Which
Toward the Ad Affects
Advertiser Viewers’ Arousal
Evaluations Mood Levels
of the Evoked by
Ad Execution the Ad
Itself
7-7
Forming Attitudes
• An Attitude can form in several different
ways depending on the Hierarchy of Effects
and how the attitude is learned.
• It can occur because of:
– Classical Conditioning, i.e. Attitude Object is
paired with a catchy jingle.
– Instrumental Conditioning, i.e. consumption of
the Attitude Object is reinforced.
– Complex Cognitive Process, i.e. teenager models
behavior of friends and media figures.
7-8
Forming Attitudes
Levels of Commitment to an Attitude
Degree of Commitment
Internalization
Identification
Compliance
The Consistency Principle
Consumers Value Harmony Among Their Thoughts,
Feelings, and Behaviors, and They are Motivated
to Maintain Uniformity Among These Elements.
7-9
Cognitive Dissonance and
Harmony Among Values
• States that when a person is confronted with
inconsistencies among attitudes or behaviors,
he or she will take some action to resolve this
“dissonance”.
• Theory focuses on situations in which two
Cognitive Elements are inconsistent with one
another.
– Cognitive Elements can be something that a person
believes about himself, a behavior he performs, or
an observation about his surroundings.
• Dissonance reduction can occur either by
eliminating, adding, or changing elements.
7-10
Social Judgment Theory
Latitudes of Acceptance and Rejection
Assimilation
Attitude Anchor
Contrast
Latitude of
Acceptance
Latitudes of Rejection
7-11
Balance Theory
Considers Relations Among Elements a Person
Might Perceive as Belonging Together and Desires
the Relations Among the Elements in a Triad to be
Harmonious, or Balanced.
A Person and His/ Her
Perceptions (+ or - )
Triad
Some Other An Attitude
Person or Object
Object
Marketers May Use Celebrities to Endorse Products to
Achieve Balance.
7-12
Multiattribute Attitude Models
Models Assume That a Consumer’s Attitude (Evaluation) of
an Attitude Object Will Depend on the Beliefs He or She Has
About Several or Many Attributes of the Object.
Attributes Beliefs
Importance
Weights
7-13
The Fishbein Model
The Fishbein Model is the Most Influential
Multiattribute Model and It Measures Three
Components of Attitudes:
Salient Beliefs Object-Attitude
About Linkages, or The
the Object That Probability That a
Are Considered Particular Object Has
During Evaluation an Important
Attribute
Evaluation of Each
of the
Important Attributes
7-14
Fishbein Model
• Formed by integrating (summing) the
separate evaluations of the salient
beliefs (ei), weighted by the strength
of each beliefs (bi), to create an
overall evaluation or attitude (Ao).
• Ao = Sbiei
7-15
How Beliefs Are Acquired
• Direct experience with product.
• Information processing
–information from outside sources
(friends)
• Vicarious experience
• Inferences
7-17
Strategic Implications of the
Multiattribute Model
Strengthen Perceived
Capitalize on
Product / Attribute
Relative Advantage
Linkages
Influence Competitors’
Add a New Attribute
Ratings
7-18
Attitude-Behavior Relationship
• Weak empirical relationship between
attitude and behavior
• Why?
–Overall evaluation of product (Ao) not
tied to situational factors while
behaviors, in contrast, always occur in a
situational context or are highly
influenced by the environment.
7-19
Using Attitudes to Predict
Behavior
The Extended Fishbein Model is Called the
“Theory of Reasoned Action” and Includes
the Following Modifications:
Intentions Attitude
Social
Versus Toward
Pressure
Behavior Buying
7-20
The Theory of Reasoned Action
• Reflects the assumption that
consumers consciously consider the
consequences of alternative actions
and choose the behavior which leads
to the most desirable consequences.
7-22
Obstacles to Predicting Behavior
in the Theory of Reasoned Action
Obstacles to Predicting Behavior
Design Time-Frame
Locus of Control Correspondence
Basic Assumptions
Attitude Accessibility
Theory of Trying 7-23
States That the Criterion of Behavior in the Reasoned Action
Model Should be Replaced With Trying to Reach a Goal.
Recognizes That Additional Factors Might Intervene Between
Intent and Performance Such As:
Amount of Control Over Situation
Expectations of Success or Failure
Social Norms
Attitudes Toward the Process of Trying
Frequency of Past Trying of Behavior
Recentness of Past Trying of Behavior
7-24
Tracking Attitudes Over Time
Attitude Tracking Programs Allow Researchers to
Analyze Attitude Trends Over an Extended Period of
Time. Some Dimensions To Include in Attitude
Tracking Programs Include:
Changes in Different Age Groups
Lifecycle, Cohort and Historical Effects
Scenarios About the Future
Future Plans and Confidence in the Economy
Identification of
Change Agents