Social Psychology
by David G. Myers 8th Edition
Behaviors and Attitudes
Attitudes (cont.)
When Do Attitudes Predict Behavior?
Minimizing social influences on expressed attitudes
Minimizing other influences on behavior
Examining attitudes specific to the behavior
Making attitudes potent
Does Behavior Determine Attitudes?
Role playing
Saying becomes believing
The foot-in-the-door phenomenon
Evil acts and attitudes
Interracial behavior and attitudes
Social movements
Why Do Actions (Seem to) Affect Attitudes?
Self-Presentation Theory
This theory explains why our actions might seem to affect our behavior.
Self-presentation theory says that our behavior is aimed at creating desired impressions, and it may seem like our attitudes have changed (because we act in a certain way) when inside our attitudes don’t really match our behavior.
Why Do Actions (Really) Affect Attitudes?
Cognitive dissonance theory
Insufficient justification
Dissonance after decisions
Dissonance & Insufficient Justification
More on Dissonance
Why Do Actions (Really) Affect Attitudes?
A Second Theory
Self-perception theory
An alternative to the cognitive dissonance theory
When we are unsure of our attitudes, we infer them from our behavior
Overjustification and intrinsic motivations
Comparing the theories
Dissonance as arousal
Self-perceiving when not self-contradicting
Attitudes & Motivation
Cognitive Dissonance-Revised
Self-Affirmation Theory
Comparison of the Two Theories