We explain what attitude is, how it is classified and why we adopt different attitudes. Also, its main characteristics and elements.
What is attitude?
The attitude (from Latin attitude), can be defined as the manifestation of a state of mind or as a tendency to act in a certain way.
Definitions from other authors:
- CM Judd. “Attitudes are enduring evaluations of various aspects of the social world, evaluations that are stored in memory.”
- R. Jeffress. “Attitude is our emotional and mental response to life's circumstances.”
The concept of attitude is widely used in the field of psychology, in which attitudes cannot be considered as particular issues but rather must be understood within a social and temporal context.
The attitudes are acquired and learned throughout life and acquire a direction towards a certain end. This differentiates it from biological characteristics, such as sleep or hunger.
The attitude is made up of three essential components:
- Behavioral element Firstly, this element refers to the way in which emotions or thoughts are expressed.
- Emotional element Secondly, this element refers to the feelings that each person has.
- Cognitive element Lastly, this element refers to what the individual thinks.
See also: Egocentrism
Types of attitudes
The attitudes that individuals acquire are influenced by various causes, such as relationships, beliefs and experiences that have been lived throughout the existence of each person. These variants drive individuals to act in different ways in very similar situations.
That is why It is common to hear terms like positive attitude or negative attitude which can determine the success or failure of what you are trying to do. On the other hand, specialists have made certain classifications determining the types of attitudes in:
- Selfish attitude People who act with this type of attitude are characterized by being interested in satisfying their own needs without being interested in the needs of others. In this case, any means is used, even other people can be a means to achieve what is desired.
- Manipulative attitude Individuals who have these attitudes usually have characteristics in common with the previous case, unlike the fact that they really use others as an instrument to satisfy their own needs, that is, they effectively use other people as tools.
- Altruistic attitude People who adopt this type of attitude are completely opposite to the two cases mentioned above since they are not interested in their own benefit, but in that of others. Other people are not used as a means or tool but are understood as ends in themselves. People with an altruistic attitude tend to be understanding and attentive.
- emotional attitude People who acquire attitudes of this type tend to be interested in the feelings and emotional state of other people. Like the previous case, they do not seek to exclusively satisfy their needs but are considerate of others. Many times these people are emotional and sensitive towards others.
Why do we adopt different attitudes?
The attitude that individuals exhibit towards their environment and the social environment in which they are integrated, on more than one occasion, can reflect different functions depending on the result you want to achieve.
In this way, a subject who adopts a cautious attitude aims to accomplish your tasks safely and trying to reduce the margin of error to the minimum possible. The different attitudes that a subject exhibits will determine the sense of predisposition with which he or she will want to act.
Many specialists affirm that attitude assumes a considerably high degree of importance within a group or even a society. However, the role played by an individual's attitude can be differentiated as positive or negative.
As long as there is a positive attitude in the majority of the members of a group, it can be said to have effective tendencies for evolution and adaptation, since the predisposition of each individual is positive. When a group encounters members who emanate negative attitudes, the direction of the group will be consolidated as involutive and the possibilities of failure will be higher.
Obtaining attitudes is in no way innate, but on the contrary the human being is the one who acquires and adopts them based on lived experiences.
In this sense, it is correct to say that an attitude It is acquired through active experience with something specific such as an object, an event, a person, etc. Also the result caused in response to a stimulus, generated by external agents, is a means by which attitudes are obtained.
Characteristics of attitudes
Attitudes are subject to various completely recognizable characteristics:
- Attitudes are predisposed to spontaneous change and innate flexibility.
- Attitudes are the main driving force of influence in relation to responses to stimuli and the behaviors adopted.
- Attitudes can respond to multiple situations, therefore they are said to be transferable.
- Attitudes are acquired through experience and obtaining knowledge in each event that makes up an individual's life. In this way, attitudes influence the different behaviors that the subject adopts.
Elements of attitude
The social psychologist, Rodríguez Aroldo, highlights that attitude is composed of different essential elements:
- Cognitive element The very existence of an attitude is complemented together with the existence of a cognitive scheme that the subject himself recreates. This scheme is made up of the perception that can be captured about the object in question, along with the beliefs and data that we previously have about it. This element can also be understood as an attitudinal model of expectation for value. The studies carried out by Fishbein and Ajzen affirm based on this that any object for which no type of data or information is possessed will never be able to generate an attitude in the individual.
- Behavioral element According to Rodríguez Aroldo, the behavioral element is one that is active at all times. Furthermore, it defines it as the attitudinal current that is produced when reacting to an object in a specific way.
- emotional element Unlike the behavioral element, the affective element is made up of the feelings expressed, whether positive or negative, towards a social object. It also represents the point of comparison between beliefs and opinions, always characterized by their cognitive side.
