Attitude

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Attitude: Definition, Nature and

Characteristics (Explained)
8-11 minutes
An attitude is a positive; negative or mixed evaluation of an object

that is expressed at some level of intensity. It is an expression of
favorable or unfavorable evaluation of a person, place, thing or
event.
These are fundamental determinants of our perceptions of, and

actions toward all aspects of our social environment. Attitudes
involve a complex organization of evaluative beliefs, feelings, and
tendencies toward certain actions.
How much we like or dislike something determines our behavior

towards that thing.
We tend to approach, seek out or be associated with things we like;

we avoid, shun or reject things we do not like.
Some examples of attitudes are- he has a positive attitude about

the changes, she is friendly and has a good attitude, he was
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showing some attitude during practice today, so the coach benched

him, I like my friends that means I am expressing my attitudes
towards my friends, etc.
Definition of Attitude
According to Gordon Allport, “An attitude is a mental and neural

state of readiness, organized through experience, exerting a
directive or dynamic influence upon the individual’s response to all
objects and situations with which it is related.”
According to Si P. Robbins – “Attitude is manner, disposition, feeling

and position with regard to a person or thing, tendency or
orientation especially in the mind.”
Frank Freeman said, “An attitude is a dispositional readiness to

respond to certain institutions, persons or objects in a consistent
manner which has been learned and has become one’s typical
mode of response.”
Thurstone said, “An attitude denotes the sum total of man’s

inclinations and feelings, prejudice or bias, pre-conCeived notions,
ideas, fears, threats and other any specific topic.”
Anastasi defined attitude as, “A tendency to react favorably or

unfavorably towards a designated class of stimuli, such as a
national or racial group, a custom or an institution.”
According to N.L. Munn, “Attitudes are learned predispositions

towards aspects of our environment. They may be positively or
negatively directed towards certain people, service or institution.”
Characteristics of Attitude
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Attitude can be described as a tendency to react positively or

negatively to a person or circumstances.
Thus the two main elements of attitude are this tendency or

predisposition and the direction of this predisposition.
There are the characteristics of attitude;
1. Attitudes are the complex combination of things we tend to call

personality, beliefs, values, behaviors, and motivations.
2. It can fall anywhere along a continuum from very favorable to very

unfavorable.
3. All people, irrespective of their status or intelligence, hold attitudes.
4. An attitude exists in every person’s mind. It helps to define our

identity, guide our actions, and influence how we judge people.
5. Although the feeling and belief components of attitude are internal

to a person, we can view a person’s attitude from his or her
resulting behavior.
Components of Attitude
Attitudes are simply expressions of much we like or dislike various

things. Attitudes represent our evaluations, preferences or
rejections based on the information we receive.
3 components of attitude are;
1. Cognitive Component.
2. Affective Component.
3. Behavioral Component.
Factors Influencing Attitudes
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By attitudes, we mean the beliefs, feelings, and action tendencies

of an individual or group of individuals towards objects, ideas, and
people.
Attitudes involve some knowledge of a Situation.
However, the essential aspect, of the attitude is found in the fact

that some characteristic feeling or emotion is experienced and, as
we would accordingly expect, some definite tendency to action is
associated.
Subjectively, then, the important factor is the feeling or emotion.
There are a number of different factors that can influence how and
why attitudes form. These are-
Social Factors.
Direct Instruction.
Family.
Prejudices.
Personal Experience.
Media.
Educational and Religious Institutions.
Physical Factors.
Economic Status and Occupations.
Learn more about factors influencing attitudes.
Types of Attitudes
Attitude is something that lies between emotions and thought

processing. It may be positive or negative.
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In organizational behavior; three types of attitudes are;
1. Job Satisfaction,
2. Job Involvement, and
3. Organizational Commitment.
Functions of Attitudes
The most important function of an attitude can only be ascertained

by considering it in relation to the person who holds it and the
environment in which they operate.
Daniel Katz outlines four functions of attitude areas:
1. Adjustment Function.
2. Ego-Defensive Function.
3. Value-Expressive Function.
4. Knowledge Function.
Barriers to Change Attitudes
The process of changing the attitude is not always easy.
Actually, the barriers are the limits which prevent the organization
from achieving its predetermined goals.
So every organization should be aware of these and should take

corrective actions.
Barriers to Change Attitudes are;
Prior Commitment.
Insufficient Information.
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Balance and Consistency.
Lack of Resources.
Improper Reward System.
Resistance to Change.
Ways of Changing Attitudes
Attitude can be changed if we differentiate negative attitude from a

positive attitude.
A positive attitude can bring positive change in life, It is difficult to

change attitudes but with some effort, it can be done.
Some of the ways of changing attitude are as follows;
New information will help to change attitudes.
Negative attitudes are mainly formed owing to insufficient

information.
Attitudes may change through direct experience.
Another way in which attitudes can be changed is by resolving

discrepancies between attitudes and behavior.
Workplace and Attitudes
Taking this a step further, we can assemble some ideas of how

these three components of attitudes can impact the workplace.
The challenge in the workplace is that now these components are

tied to work functions, policy, procedures and organizational
structure, as well as the people and individuals present in the
organization.
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For example, we could have thoughts or beliefs (cognitive) about

managers in general, and those thoughts or beliefs could manifest
themselves is not trusting a manager (effective), and thus we would
never want to develop a close relationship with a manager
(behavioral).
Attitude Surveys
For an understanding how the employee perceives the organization

and workgroups, the most popular method is through the use of
attitude surveys.
Often an essential component of organizational training and

development, Employee Attitude surveys provide a picture of the
organization’s needs.
Employee attitude surveys measure the employee’s opinions on

most of the aspects of a workplace including:
Overall satisfaction.
Management/employee relations.
Corporate culture.
Career development.
Compensation.
Benefits.
Recognition and rewards.
Working conditions.
Training.
Staffing levels.
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Safety concerns.
Policies and procedures.
Attitudes and Beliefs
Beliefs have a big impact on attitude.
An attitude is a relatively enduring organization of beliefs, feelings,

and behavioral tendencies towards socially significant objects,
groups, events or symbols. It is a learned predisposition to respond
in a consistently favorable or unfavorable manner with respect to a
given object.
Attitude is an expression of evaluation toward a person, place, thing

or event. It will always have a positive and negative element and
have a tendency to behave in a certain way.
Attitudes vs. Behavior
Attitudes influences behavior.
Attitude refers to feelings, beliefs and behavior predispositions

directed towards people, groups, ideas or objects. It influences the
behavior of the individuals. It decides how to act or behave in a
particular situation.
Attitude is a kind of habit. It is a usual way of doing things.
Everything in an organization will get better if the attitude of

everyone gets better. Successes and failures in life depend upon
the attitude of the individuals.
If attitudes are positive, then human relations will be positive. It is

internal and very difficult to change.
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Behavior is the way a person responds to his attitude. This

response is either positive or negative, depending on how that
views his position.
Conclusion
Finally, we can say that attitudes are evaluative statement favorable

or unfavorable related to the person, object or events.
Although there are some differences regarding attitudes, based on

the opinions of the above, it can be concluded that the attitude is a
state in which man moves to act or do anything in response to a
situation or condition of the objects in the surrounding environment.
Actually, it is a statement toward something, or someone exhibited

in one’s beliefs, feelings, or intended behavior. It is a social
orientation an underlying inclination to respond to something either
favorably or unfavorably.
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Attitude: Definition, Nature and Characteristics (Explained) about:reader?url=https://iedunote.com/attitude-definition-characteristics-...

Attitude: Definition, Nature and

An attitude is a positive; negative or mixed evaluation of an object

These are fundamental determinants of our perceptions of, and

How much we like or dislike something determines our behavior

We tend to approach, seek out or be associated with things we like;

Some examples of attitudes are- he has a positive attitude about

1 of 9 2018-07-04, 12:44 p.m.

showing some attitude during practice today, so the coach benched

According to Gordon Allport, “An attitude is a mental and neural

According to Si P. Robbins – “Attitude is manner, disposition, feeling

Frank Freeman said, “An attitude is a dispositional readiness to

Thurstone said, “An attitude denotes the sum total of man’s

Anastasi defined attitude as, “A tendency to react favorably or

According to N.L. Munn, “Attitudes are learned predispositions

2 of 9 2018-07-04, 12:44 p.m.

Attitude can be described as a tendency to react positively or

Thus the two main elements of attitude are this tendency or

There are the characteristics of attitude;

1. Attitudes are the complex combination of things we tend to call

2. It can fall anywhere along a continuum from very favorable to very

3. All people, irrespective of their status or intelligence, hold attitudes.

4. An attitude exists in every person’s mind. It helps to define our

5. Although the feeling and belief components of attitude are internal

Attitudes are simply expressions of much we like or dislike various

3 components of attitude are;

Factors Influencing Attitudes

3 of 9 2018-07-04, 12:44 p.m.

By attitudes, we mean the beliefs, feelings, and action tendencies

Attitudes involve some knowledge of a Situation.

However, the essential aspect, of the attitude is found in the fact

Subjectively, then, the important factor is the feeling or emotion.

Educational and Religious Institutions.

Economic Status and Occupations.

Learn more about factors influencing attitudes.

Attitude is something that lies between emotions and thought

4 of 9 2018-07-04, 12:44 p.m.

In organizational behavior; three types of attitudes are;

2. Job Involvement, and

The most important function of an attitude can only be ascertained

Daniel Katz outlines four functions of attitude areas:

Barriers to Change Attitudes

The process of changing the attitude is not always easy.

So every organization should be aware of these and should take

Barriers to Change Attitudes are;

5 of 9 2018-07-04, 12:44 p.m.

Balance and Consistency.

Improper Reward System.

Ways of Changing Attitudes

Attitude can be changed if we differentiate negative attitude from a

A positive attitude can bring positive change in life, It is difficult to

Some of the ways of changing attitude are as follows;

New information will help to change attitudes.

Negative attitudes are mainly formed owing to insufficient

Attitudes may change through direct experience.

Another way in which attitudes can be changed is by resolving

Workplace and Attitudes

Taking this a step further, we can assemble some ideas of how

The challenge in the workplace is that now these components are