Attitudes and Attitude
Change: Influencing
Thoughts and Feelings
(part 2)
Sacha Pierre
Quotes about the Interplay between individual and society
People are neither free agents nor passive reactors to external
pressures. Instead, through self-regulatory processes, they
have the ability to exercise some measure of control over their
own actions.
- Albert Bandura
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How Do Attitudes Change?
• When attitudes change, it is often due to social influence.
• Attitudes are social phenomena.
• Sometimes attitudes change dramatically over short periods of
time.
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Changing Attitudes by Changing Behaviour
• People experience dissonance
• When their image is threatened
• When they cannot explain behaviour with external justifications
• Leads to finding internal justification for behaviour
• Brings person’s attitude and behaviour closer together
• Leads to attitude change
• How can we illustrate this process visually?
36 Pearson 2019
Persuasive Communications and Attitude Change
• Communication (e.g., a speech or television ad) advocating a particular side of an issue
• How should you construct a message so that it would really change people’s attitudes?
• Yale attitude change approach
• The study of the conditions under which people are most likely to change their attitudes in response to
persuasive messages
• “Who said what to whom.”
• Who: The source of the communication
• What: The nature of the communication
• Whom: The nature of the audience
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The Central and Peripheral Routes to Persuasion
(1 of 4)
• Elaboration likelihood model:
• An explanation of the two ways in which persuasive communications can cause attitude change
• Specifies when people will be influenced by what is said (i.e., the logic of the arguments) or by more
superficial characteristics (e.g., who gives the speech or how long it is).
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Elaboration Likelihood Model of Persuasion (simplypsychology.org)
The Central and Peripheral Routes to Persuasion
(3 of 4)
• Central route to persuasion
• Elaborate on a persuasive communication
• Listening carefully to and thinking about the arguments
• Occurs when people have both the ability and the motivation to listen carefully
39 Pearson 2019
The Central and
Peripheral Routes to
Persuasion (4 of 4)
• Peripheral route to persuasion
• People do not elaborate on the
arguments.
• People can be swayed by
peripheral cues, such as:
• who delivers a persuasive
message.
• An example is when consumers buy
certain products because a celebrity
tweets about them.
Pearson 2019 40
Taylor Swift (pinterest.com)
The Motivation to Pay Attention to
the Arguments (1 of 2)
• Personal relevance of the topic
• How important is the topic to a person’s well-being?
• More personally relevant, pay more attention
• Central route
• Need for cognition
• A personality variable reflecting the extent to which people engage in and enjoy effortful
cognitive activities.
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The Motivation to Pay Attention to
the Arguments (2 of 2)
People high in the need for
cognition
Form attitudes through
Central Route
People low in the need for
cognition
Rely on Peripheral Route
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The Ability to Pay Attention to
the Arguments
• When people are unable to pay close
attention to the arguments, they are swayed
more by peripheral cues.
• Status of communicator
• Liking or trusting communicator
• However, someone with a weak argument can
still be persuasive if they distract their
audience
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY
43 Pearson 2019
Effects of Personal Relevance on Type of
Attitude Change
(Based on data in Petty, Cacioppo, & Goldman, 1981)
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How to Achieve Long-Lasting
Attitude Change
• People who base their attitudes on a careful analysis of the arguments will be:
• More likely to maintain a specific attitude
• More likely to behave consistently with the specific attitude
• More resistant to counter-persuasion
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Fear-Arousing Communications
• Refer to persuasive messages that attempt to change people’s attitudes by arousing their fears
• Strong amounts of fear fail if they overwhelm people.
• Become defensive
• Deny importance of threat
• Cannot think rationally about issue
• Do fear-arousing communications work?
• Moderate amounts of fear work best
46 Pearson 2019
Fear and Smoking Ads
The FDA has tried to implement guidelines to require all
cigarette packs sold in the United States to display
pictures that warn about the dangers of smoking, such
as the one shown here.
Based on what you have learned would this ad have been
effective?
Pearson, 2019
Effects of Fear Appeals on Attitude Change
(Adapted from Leventhal, Watts, & Pagano, 1967)
48 Pearson 2019
Emotions as Heuristics: Heuristic–systematic model of
persuasion (1 of 3)
An explanation of the two ways in which persuasive communications can cause attitude change
One way is: Second way is:
• Systematically processing the • Using peripheral route
merits of the arguments • Using mental shortcuts (heuristics)
• Using emotions as heuristic
• e.g., “Experts are
always right.”
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Emotions as Heuristics (2 of 3)
• Use emotions and moods as heuristics to determine attitudes
• Ask yourself: “How do I feel about it?”
• If we feel good
• Must have a positive attitude about object
• If we feel bad
• Must have a negative attitude about object
• Problem with the “How do I feel about it?” heuristic
• Can make mistakes about what is causing our mood
• Misattribute feelings created by one source to another
• If so, people might make a bad decision
50 Pearson 2019
Emotions as Heuristics (3 of 3)
• Advertisers and retailers want to
create good feelings about their
product
• Pair product with appealing
music or showing pleasant
images
• Hope people will attribute
feelings to the product
• E.g., CinePlex A Balloon for Ben
https://youtu.be/1M4EKe01ylk?si=uRC2m8ileLgkOCuw
51 Pearson 2019
Emotions as Heuristics (extra)
• Advertisers and retailers want to
create good feelings about their
product
• Pair product with appealing
music or showing pleasant
images
• Hope people will attribute
feelings to the product
• E.g., CinePlex Lily and the Snowman https://youtu.be/ZC9vB5AUU2M?si=fzStpAuzJ6_th1II
52 Pearson 2019
Emotion and
Different Types of
Attitudes (1 of 2)
Several studies found that success of attitude change
techniques depends on the type of attitude we are trying
to change
• If an attitude is cognitively based
• Try to change it with rational arguments
• If it is affectively based
• Try to change it with emotional appeals
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Pearson 2019
Emotion and
Different Types of
Attitudes (2 of 2)
Some ads stress the objective merits of a product
• Price, reliability, efficiency
Other ads stress emotions and values
• Sex, beauty, youthfulness
Which kind of ad is most effective?
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Pearson 2019
Attitude Change
and the Body
Body posture plays a significant role in attitude
change
Research Says:
• Cartoons rated as more funny when
holding an object between one’s teeth
(mimicking a smile) compared to
holding it between one’s lips (mimicking
a frown)
• Nodding or shaking one’s head while
listening to strong or weak arguments
also affects attitude change
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This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND Pearson 2019
Attitude
Change and
the Body
https://mediaplayer.pearsoncmg.com/asset
s/mypsychlab-
body_movement_and_persuasion
Pearson 2019
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY
How Advertising Works
• Many take emotional approach of attitude change
• Little difference between brands
• Associate product with excitement, youth, sexual
attraction
• Attitudes that are more cognitively based
• Personally relevant?
• Yes—then use logical, fact-based arguments
• No—might use peripheral route
• Peripheral route leads to attitude change
that is not long lasting
• Goal to make product personally relevant
Pearson 2019
Subliminal Advertising: A
Form of Mind Control?
• Subliminal messages:
• Words or pictures that are not consciously
perceived but may nevertheless influence
people’s judgments, attitudes, and
behaviour
• No evidence that subliminal messages
influence behaviour
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Advertising and Culture
Western Cultures Eastern Cultures
Ads stress independence Ads stress interdependence
• “It’s easy when you have the right shoes.” • “The shoes for your family.”
May base attitudes more on individuality and May base attitudes more on standing in
self-improvement social group
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Resisting Persuasive Messages
• Attitude inoculation Theory
• Framework for helping individuals resist
attempts to change their attitudes by initially
exposing them to small doses of the arguments
against their position
• Warn of potential threat
• Provide with examples of potential challenges
• Provide a counterargument
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA
• Successfully used in political campaigns, public
speaking anxiety and cigarette use reduction
Jackson et al., 2017)
60 Pearson 2019
Being Alert to Product
Placement (1 of 3)
• Advertisers increasingly place
messages about their product in
shows.
• Pay the makers of a TV show or
movie to incorporate their products
into the script
• When people are forewarned, they
analyze what they see and hear
more carefully and as a result are
likely to avoid attitude change
Pearson 2019
Being Alert to
Product
Placement (2 of 3)
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA-NC
• Without such warnings, people pay
little attention to the persuasive This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND
attempts and tend to accept them at
face value.
• Before children watch TV or see a
movie, remind them that they will
likely encounter several attempts to
change their attitudes.
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-NC
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Being Alert to
Product Placement
(3 of 3)
https://mediaplayer.pearsoncmg.com/assets/mypsychlab-
Resisting_Persuasive_Efforts
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA
63 Pearson 2019
Resisting Peer Pressure
• Peer pressure in adolescence
− Operates on values and emotions
− Liking and acceptance by peer group (need to belong assumption)
• Not based in logical arguments
− To make adolescents resistant to attitude change attempts via peer pressure
− Attitude inoculation that focuses on inoculating against emotional appeals
Pearson 2019
When Persuasion Attempts
Backfire: Reactance Theory
• Reactance theory
• When people feel their freedom to perform a
certain behaviour is threatened (or feel
forced), they react against the persuasion.
• May try to reduce feeling by performing
the threatened behaviour
References
Aronson, E., Wilson, T.D., Sommers, S.R. (2018). Social Psychology (10th Ed.). Pearson Ltd.
Sabiqotul Husna. (2021). Denial attitude and behavior as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic: A qualitative study. Humanitas: Indonesian Psychological Journal,
18(2), 153–163. https://doi.org/10.26555/humanitas.v18i2.19173
Kashima, Y., Laham, S. M., Dix, J., Levis, B., Wong, D., & Wheeler, M. (2015). Social transmission of cultural practices and implicit attitudes. Organizational Behavior
and Human Decision Processes, 129, 113–125. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.obhdp.2014.05.005
Mozuraitis, M., Chambers, C. G., Daneman, M., Weller, J., & Yaxu Zhang. (2016). Verbal Ability, Argument Order, and Attitude Formation. Frontiers in Psychology, 1–11.
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01374
Sardinha, L., & Catalán, H. E. N. (2018). Attitudes towards domestic violence in 49 low- and middle-income countries: A gendered analysis of prevalence and
country-level correlates. PLoS ONE, 13(10). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0206101
Yoshihisa Kashima, Simon M. Laham, Jennifer Dix, Bianca Levis, Darlene Wong, Melissa Wheeler (2015). Social transmission of cultural practices and implicit
attitudes Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes Volume 129: 113-125
Nelson, E. M. M. (2023). Advertising and Psychology. Salem Press Encyclopedia of Health.
66 Pearson 2019
Glossary
Emotions as Heuristics
Persuasive Communication
Body Posture and Attitude Change
Elaboration Likelihood Model
Advertising and Persuasion
Central Route
Advertising and Culture
Peripheral Route
Attitude Inoculation Theory
Fear-Arousing Communication
Reactance Theory
Cognitive Dissonance and Attitudes
67 Pearson 2019
*Let’s Recap
Attitude Formation
Classical Conditioning, includes terms like neutral
stimulus, unconditioned response, conditioned stimulus,
and conditioned response.
Operant Conditioning, includes terms like reinforcement,
‘punishment, positive, and negative.
Observation, (behaviourally based attitude) includes terms
like weak, ambiguous, infer, modelling, imitation, vicarious
reinforcement.
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