Attitudes Power Point

ATTITUDES
TOPIC: ATTITUDES
GENERAL OBJECTIVE
 Atthe end of a lecture/discussion
student should be able to acquire
knowledge on attitudes.
SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES
At the end of the lecture/discussion students
should be able to:
1. Define Attitudes.
2. Describe the development of attitudes.
3. Explain the types of attitudes.
4. Outline examples of positive and negative
attitudes.
5. Outline the factors which influence formation
of attitudes.
INTRODUCTION
 Attitudes are an important element or
entity to consider in the Nursing career.
 How we react to the world around us
determines the quality and effectiveness

of all our thinking, emotions and
behaviour.
 The positive or negative consequences of
the behaviour.
DEFINITION OF ATTITUDES
 Attitude is a way of thinking or feeling
about someone and something. (soanes
2008)
 Attitudes are mental positions or feeling
towards a person, object or idea. For

example; acceptance, compassion and
openness. (koziel etal 2008)
DEVELOPMENT OF ATTITUDES
 There are three ways of developing
attitudes
1. INSTRUMENTAL
CONDITIONING
 It involves rewarding and
punishment.
- Rewarding for good attitude.
- Punishment for bad attitude.
2. MODELING
 Attitudecan be acquired through
observing the action of others.
Children continually look up to
adults and others for information on

how to behave.
3. DIRECT EXPERIENCE

For someone to develop an attitude
towards a certain object, issue,
situation and person, there is need for
direct experience.
 The experience can be positive or
negative.
TYPES OF ATTITUDES
1. Neutral Attitudes (Spectators).
 Spectators watch life happen and
observe others.
 They play it safe and try to avoid
risks.
 Spectators are afraid of change.
CONT…
 They are often tired or detached.
 Defining word is: Maybe.
Typical phrases: I doubt it, I might, I

don't know and I'm hesitant.
2. NEGATIVE ATTITUDES(CRITICS)
 Critics comment on life and
complain.
 Critique after the facts.
 Imposing their "expertise" and
finding faults in others.

 Critics are annoyed about change.
CONT…
 They often appear frustrated
 Defining word is: No!
 Prevailing action: Stop!
 Typical phrases: I can't, I won't, No
way and you made me do that.

3. POSITIVE ATTITUDES (PLAYERS)

Players actively participate in life
and embrace opportunities.
 Take risks and are willing to make
mistakes for the purpose of learning.

 Players enjoy learning and change.
CONT…
 Confident and optimistic.
 Defining word is: Yes!
 Prevailing action: Go!
 Typical phrases: I can, I will, I'm sure
and I choose to.

POSITIVE ATTITUDES
 A positive attitude is one kind of
behaviour which is pleasing, satisfactory
and helpful.
 A positive attitude helps in the formation
of nurse patient relationship.

 Makes the work of the nurse easier and
effective.
EXAMPLES OF POSITIVE ATTITUDES:
1. Respect
Respect is an attitude that
emphasizes the other persons’
worth and individuality.
Respect the patient regardless
of age, sex, races, colour and

social status.
2. Acceptance

Acceptance emphasizes neither approval nor
disapproval.
 The nurse willingly receives the client’s
honest feelings and actions without judgment.

 An accepting attitude allows client to express
personal feelings freely and to be themselves.

3. Caring and warmth
 This conveys a feeling of emotional
closeness, deep and genuine concern
for the patient.
4. Empathy
 Consists of awareness of, sensitivity

to and identification with the feelings
of another person.
 Nurses should show empathy to the
patients in order to make the patients

comfortable.
5. Commitment
A committed nurse reports for work
on time and attends to clients
problems accordingly.
 Un necessary tea and lunch breaks
should be avoided. A committed

nurse attends to an emergency even
when on break.
6. Treating patients equally
 Patients should be treated equally
and with respect regardless of their
race, religion and background,
whether poor or rich.
7. Autonomy
 Nurses should be able to carry out
certain duties without being supervised
and without waiting to be told. An
autonomous nurse would perform
his/her duties without shifting them to
others or giving hand over.
8. Reliability
 Nurses
should be trust worth and
dependable by their clients.
9. Good role model
 A nurse should be a good role model to
the clients.
 A nurse should show or set a good picture
and reputation of the nursing profession.

 A good nurse should have qualities of
Florence Nightingale who served people

whole heartedly with kindness and care.
10. Co-operation
 Nursesdo not work in isolation but
need to practice collaborative nursing
care with other health professionals.
11. Economical
 A nurse should have a positive
attitude towards rational use of
hospital equipment and anything
belonging to the hospital.
 Avoid being wasteful.
12. Self awareness
 Self awareness is basic to
interpersonal relationships especially
the nurse patient relationship.
 As a nurse, know your weaknesses
and strengths in order to control

yourself whenever necessary.
13. Assertiveness
 Thisis the ability to stand for one’s
own right and those of the people in
one’s care without interfering with
other people’s rights or causing
injury to their feelings.
NEGATIVE ATTITUDES
 Negative attitudes are values, ideas
and beliefs which are unsatisfactory
and not pleasing to the other person.
EXAMPLES OF NEGATIVE ATTITUDES:-
1. Long waiting time
 Leaving patients to wait for a long
time without proper explanation.
 As nurses, you need to identify the
weak patients in the queue and attend

to them quickly.
1. Failure to greet patients or smile
 Some nurses would seem to be too busy
such that they fail to greet the patients or
smile at them.
 This kind of attitude makes the patient
feel less important.

 Patients feel not respected and
unwanted.
2. Ignoring patients in decision making
 This occurs when patients are not
told about their health problems.
 Hospital management also involve
the patients in decision making as

they are the recipients of the health
care.
3. Neggligency
 This is being careless and laxity in
the provision of care by the nurse.
For example; omission to give drugs
to the patient and being drunk on
duty.
4. Lack of confidentiality
 Telling
people about the patient’s
information is a bad attitude and it
may attract a law-suit.
5. Aggressiveness
 Shouting at patients is an example of
a negative attitude.
FACTORS WHICH INFLUENCE
DEVELOPMENT OF ATTITUDES
1. Family
 It is an agent of socialization
It has a great influence on attitude

development.
2. Peer groups
 People tend to spend more time with
groups of equals.
 During this time, they meet different
people with different attitudes from

which one may learn. Attitudes
change as one grows.
3. Culture
 It is passed on from one generation to
the other.
 Culture gives identity to members of
society.
 It includes values, ideas and customs of
groups of people
 These will influence attitude formation.
4. Religion
 It
provides social control with
regards to moral behavior. Norms,
values and beliefs for a certain
religion determine the type of
attitude one will develop.
5. Age
 Young people can build attitude as
they grow they learn from
conceptualized issues and are able to
form attitudes.
6. Race
 It
has its own values and norms that
will influence attitude formation.
7. Social economic status
 It
can determine the type of attitude
to be formed.
8. Personality
 It
can determine the type of attitude
to be formed.
 A person’sbeliefs and values
strongly contribute to which attitude
will be adapted.
9. Environment
The environment in which you are will

influence the type of attitude you are
going to develop.
 Copingand adjusting to the social
environment creates the attitude
10. Mass media
 Whatyou hear and see will make you
behave in a certain way.
SUMMARY
 Attitudeis an organized and
consistent manner of feeling and
reaction towards people, issues, groups,
objects or an event in one’s
environment.
 People develop attitudes through
Instrumental, modelling and direct

experience.
CONT…
 Among the types of attitudes there is
neutral, negative and positive
attitudes.
 Factors which influence attitudes
include family, peer groups, race,

personality, background, age and
religion.
REFERENCES
1. Cormack D. F.S., (1990). Developing your Career
in Nursing, , London: Chapmen and Hall.
2. Hazel m. (2004). Potter and Perry, Foundations in
Theory and Practice. St. Louis: Mosby.
3.Notter and spalding., (1976). Professional Nursing.
9th edition, Philadelphia: J.B. Lippincott company.
4. Searle,C. (2000). Professional Nursing.
Johannesburg: Heineman.
5. Thompson et al, (2006). Nursing Ethics, 5th
edition, churchill livingstone: Elsevier limited.

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ATTITUDES

determines the quality and effectiveness

towards a person, object or idea. For

adults and others for information on

Typical phrases: I doubt it, I might, I

finding faults in others.

way and you made me do that.

mistakes for the purpose of learning.

and I choose to.

of nurse patient relationship.

of age, sex, races, colour and

honest feelings and actions without judgment.

personal feelings freely and to be themselves.

 Consists of awareness of, sensitivity

patients in order to make the patients

should be avoided. A committed

and reputation of the nursing profession.

Florence Nightingale who served people

and strengths in order to control

weak patients in the queue and attend

feel less important.

the patients in decision making as

It has a great influence on attitude

people with different attitudes from

The environment in which you are will

Instrumental, modelling and direct

include family, peer groups, race,

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