Page 599 - Understanding Psychology

Figure 20.4 Balance Theory
According to the balance theory, people are inclined to achieve con- sistency in their attitudes by balancing their beliefs and feelings about an object, person, or event against their attitudes about other people. When someone we care about strongly disagrees with us, an uncom- fortable state of imbalance occurs. What do you think we do when we become involved in a state of imbalance?
Imbalanced Balanced
Rick Rick
RR
Likes + + Loves Dislikes – + Loves
––
LXLX
Latisha Dislikes Soccer Latisha Dislikes Soccer
attitudes, of surrounding themselves with people who share the same ideas, and of attending only those speeches and lectures that support their views. It is not surprising that such people get quite upset when a piece of conflicting information finally does get through. Some people change their attitude and/or reevaluate the event. Because the new information they received does not agree with their old attitude, they revise their attitude. The smoker might consider the research on the dangers of smoking and make an attempt to quit smoking. The process of dissonance reduction does not always take place con- sciously, but it is a frequent and powerful occurrence.
ATTITUDES AND ACTIONS
Social psychologists have discovered several interesting relationships between attitudes and actions. Obviously, your attitudes affect your actions: if you like Fords, you will buy a Ford. Some of the other rela- tionships are not so obvious.
Doing Is Believing
It turns out, for example, that if you like Fords but buy a Chevrolet for some reason (perhaps you can get a better deal on a Chevy), you will end up liking Fords less. In other words, actions affect attitudes.
In many instances, if you act and speak as though you have certain beliefs and feelings, you may begin to really feel and believe this way. This phenomenon is called counterattitudinal behavior, and it is a method of reducing cognitive dissonance. For example, people accused of a crime have confessed to crimes they did not commit. They confessed to relieve the pressure; but having said that they did the deed, they begin to believe that they really are guilty.
One explanation for this phenomenon comes from the theory of cog- nitive dissonance. If a person acts one way but thinks another, he or she will experience dissonance. To reduce the dissonance, the person will
counterattitudinal behav- ior: the process of taking a public position that contradicts one’s private attitude
Chapter 20 / Attitudes and Social Influence 585