ATTITUDE

Meaning of attitude:Attitude is the evaluation statements or judgements concerning objects, people or events. More precisely attitudes can be defined as a persistent tendency to feel & behave in a particular way towards some object which may include events or individual as well. Attitude are evaluation statements either favourable or unfavorable reflects how one feels about something. Example:a) Positive attitude: - if someone is praising you, then you feel happy & show positive attitude towards that person. b) Negative attitude: - if your employer gives you incomplete information then you will show negative attitude towards your employer.

Difference between BELEIFS, VALUES & ATTITUDES:

BELIEFS
Beliefs are assumptions we make about our-selves,

VALUES

ATTITUDES
Attitudes are established ways of responding to People & situation that we have learnt

Values are about how we have to think things ought to be or about others in the world & people ought to behave, about how we expect especially in terms of quality things to be. such as honesty, openness, etc.
Beliefs are about how we

based on values & assumptions we holds. Less stable than values.

Ho

Values are stable.

Valu es differ between. Generations, regions & cultures.

think things really are.

Beliefs are ones own & depend upon individual to individual.

w we respond to a situation, & ours behavior reflects our attitude. (A settled opinion or way of thinking).
It contains 3 components:

It contains a judgmental Element (i.e. what is right, Good, bad, etc.)

-Cognitive -Affective -Behavioral

There is difference between the three however they are interlinked. Our beliefs & values have an impact on our attitude & behavior. Beliefs & Values
Influencing Factor

Attitude
Influencing Factor

Behavior

Components of attitude:Attitude

Cognitive

Affective

Behavioral

1) Cognitive component: - is the opinion or beliefs of an attitude. When you form your

opinion or judgments on the basis of available information & decide whether you have a favorable/ unfavorable opinion on that, it is the cognitive part of attitude. Example: - you might believe that one of your co-workers is paid much more than you or that your supervision doesnt know too much about the job. These beliefs comprise the cognitive components.
2) Affective component: - is the emotions & feelings. It refers to the behavioral part of

attitude. Example: - if we have positive attitude for a particular object, it is likely to be translated into a particular type of behavior.
3) Behavioral component: - is the intention to behave in a certain way towards someone &

something. A predisposition to act in a certain way. Example: - You may be interested in taking a new job; you might not actually take one if a better position isnt available.

Sources of Attitude:a) Acquired from parents, teacher, peer group members. b) They are genetic predisposition.
c) Our observation & the attitude that we imitate.

Types of Attitude:A person can have thousands of attitude but organisational behavior focuses on very limited number of job related attitude. 1) Job satisfaction 2) Job involvement
3) Organizational Commitment 1) Job satisfaction:- person with high level of satisfaction holds positive attitude towards

job & vice-versa. Job satisfaction reflects the extents to which employees find fulfillment in their work. There are various factors which affect job satisfaction such as:- personal factors like- employees needs & aspirations, etc. organizational factors like- relationship between co-workers & superiors, work policies, etc. it is closely related to an employees performance & his work-related behavior.
2) Job involvement:- it measures the degree to which a person identifies psychologically

with his/her job & considers his/her perceived performance level.

3) Organizational commitment:- a state in which an employee identifies with particular

organization & its goals & wishes to maintain membership in organization. It is also known as employee loyalty to organization

Job satisfaction:
Satisfaction with pay Satisfaction with promotion Satisfaction with work Satisfaction with supervision Satisfaction with co-workers Organizational Commitment

Measurements of attitude:Rating Scales Critical incident method Interviews Likert Scales

Effects of attitude changes:1. Absence & Tardiness: - absenteeism is unauthorized absence from the workplace while tardiness is a type of short period absence. Ranging from few minutes to several hours for each events & it is another way in which employees physically withdraw from active involvement in the organization. Both absence & tardiness may be affected by a number of factors e.g:- negative attitude of employee toward job satisfaction, etc. 2. Violence: - violence may be verbal or physical aggression at workplace is one of the most extreme consequences of lack of job satisfaction. In fact frustration caused by violence is used as defense mechanism to overcome dissatisfaction. 3. Employee Turnover: - employee turnover is the rate of change in the working personnel of an organization during a specified period. It signifies the extent to which old employees leave & new employees enter into service. 4. Employee Performance: - employee performance is higher if the employee have higher level of job satisfaction, job involvement & organizational commitment & vice-versa.

Theories of attitude:1) Cognitive Dissonance

2) Self- Perception Theory

1) Cognitive Dissonance Theory This theory is given by LEON FESTINGER. This theory explains the linkage between attitude & behavior. Dissonance refers to inconsistency. Cognitive Dissonance refers to any incompatibility than an individual might perceive between two or more of his/her attitude or behavior. Cognitive dissonance is an uncomfortable feeling caused by holding two contradictory ideas simultaneously. The "ideas" or "cognitions" in question may include attitudes and beliefs, the awareness of one's behavior, and facts. The theory of cognitive dissonance proposes that people have a motivational drive to reduce dissonance by changing their attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors, or by justifying or rationalizing their attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors No attitude can completely avoid dissonance. Example:- we know that cheating on our income tax is wrong, but we misuse the number a bit every time. belief in animal rights could be interpreted as inconsistent with eating meat or wearing fur. Noticing the contradiction would lead to dissonance, which could be experienced as anxiety, guilt, shame, anger, embarrassment, stress, and other negative emotional states.
2) Self-Perception theory

Self-perception theory (SPT) is an account of attitude change developed by psychologist Daryl Bem. It asserts that we develop our attitudes by observing our behavior and concluding what attitudes must have caused them. The theory is counterintuitive in nature, as the conventional wisdom is that attitudes come prior to behaviors. Furthermore, the theory suggests that a person induces attitudes without accessing internal cognition and mood states. He reasons his own overt behaviors rationally in the same way he attempts to explain others behaviors. Example:- a man who is asked whether he likes brown bread and who replies, I must like it; I'm always eating it. This would be the same response that his wife would give if she were asked to answer for him.