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Chapter 7Attitudes

By Michael R. Solomon

Consumer BehaviorBuying, Having, and Being

Sixth Edition

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• How do Jan and Terri differ in their attitudes toward soccer?

• Jan and Nancy are both soccer fans. How are they different?

• Which one of the three is the most likely target for ads promoting soccer?

• Is Nancy likely to convert to become a soccer fan?

Opening Vignette: Soccer

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WUSA Soccer

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The Power of Attitudes

• Attitude:– A lasting, general evaluation of people (including

oneself), objects, advertisements, or issues– Anything toward which one has an attitude is

called an object (Ao).– Attitudes are lasting because they tend to endure

over time.

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The Functions of Attitudes• Functional Theory of Attitudes:

– Attitudes exist because they serve some function for the person (i.e., they are determined by a person’s motives)

• Katz’s Attitude Functions– Utilitarian function - based on reward and punishment – Value-expressive function - goes to the consumer’s

central values or self- concept.– Ego-defensive function - protects the person from threats

or internal feelings.– Knowledge function - the need for order, meaning, and

structure.

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Clorox Uses A Utilitarian Appeal

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Suave Uses Ego Defensive

Appeal

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AC Delco Uses

a Value-Expressive

Appeal

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A Knowledge Appeal

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Addressing Smoking Attitudes

• This Norwegian ad addresses young people’s smoking attitudes by arousing strong negative feelings. The ad reads (left panel) “Smokers are more sociable than others.” (Right panel): “While it lasts.”

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The ABC Model of Attitudes• Affect:

– The way a consumer feels about an attitude object• Behavior:

– Involves the person’s intentions to do something with regard to an attitude object

• Cognition:– The beliefs a consumer has about an attitude object

• Hierarchy of Effects:– A fixed sequence of steps that occur en route to an

attitude

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ConationConation

AffectAffectCognition

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The Tricomponent Model

• Cognitive Component– The knowledge and perceptions that are acquired by a

combination of direct experience with the attitude object and related information from various sources.

• Affective Component– A consumer’s emotions or feelings about a particular

product or brand.

• Conative Component– The likelihood or tendency that an individual will

undertake a specific action or behave in a particular way with regard to the attitude object.

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A Simple Representation of the Tricomponent Attitude Model

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Hierarchy of Effects Model

Awareness

Knowledge

Liking

Preference

Conviction

Purchase

Cognitive

Affective

Conative

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Personal Values

Comfortable life Equality Excitement Freedom Fun, exciting life Happiness Inner peace Mature love Personal

accomplishment

Pleasure Salvation Security Self-fulfillment Self-respect Sense of belonging Social acceptance Wisdom

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Message Strategies

• Generic• Preemptive• Unique Selling

Proposition• Hyperbole• Comparative

Cognitive Affective Conative Brand

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An advertisement by Bonne Bell using the unique selling proposition.

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• Resonance• Emotional

Cognitive Affective Conative Brand

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Advertisement by Cheerios using a resonance, affective message strategy.

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Message Strategies

• Action-inducing• Promotional support

Cognitive Affective Conative Brand

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An advertisement by Fisher Boy encouraging consumers to enter the contest.

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Message Strategies

• Brand user• Brand image• Brand usage• Corporate

Cognitive Affective Conative Brand

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An advertisement by Skechers using a brand image message strategy.

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Hierarchy of Effects ModelMessage Strategies

Awareness Knowledge Liking PreferenceConviction Actual purchase

Cognitive strategies Affective strategies Conative strategies

Brand strategies

Message Strategies and Hierarchy of Effects Model

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Attitude Hierarchies• The Standard Learning Hierarchy:

– Consumer approaches a product decision as a problem-solving process

• The Low-Involvement Hierarchy:– Consumer does not have strong initial preference– Consumer acts on limited knowledge– Consumer forms an evaluation only after product trial

• The Experiential Hierarchy:– Consumers act on the basis of their emotional

reactions

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Experiential Hierarchy

• Emotional Contagion:– Emotions expressed by the communicator of a

marketing message affect the attitude toward the product

• Cognitive-Affective Model:– Argues that an affective judgment is the last step in

a series of cognitive processes• Independence Hypothesis:

– Takes the position that affect and cognition involve two separate, independent systems

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Smith and Wollensky

• This ad for New York’s famous Smith & Wollensky restaurant emphasizes that marketers and others associated with a product or service are often more involved with it than are their consumers.

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Product Attitudes Don’t Tell the Whole Story

• Attitude Toward the Advertisement (Aad):– A predisposition to respond in a favorable or unfavorable

manner to a particular advertising stimulus during a particular exposure occasion

• Ads Have Feelings Too:– Three emotional dimensions:

• Pleasure, arousal, and intimidation– Specific types of feelings that can be generated by an ad

• Upbeat feelings: Amused, delighted, playful• Warm feelings: Affectionate, contemplative, hopeful• Negative feelings: Critical, defiant, offended

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• Sexually suggestive scenes like the one depicted in this ad for Union Bay clothing can generate feelings that affect brand attitudes.

• What specific types of feelings or responses can this type of advertisement elicit? How will this scene affect the attitude toward the ad?

Discussion Question

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Forming Attitudes

• Not All Attitudes are Created Equal:– Levels of Commitment to an Attitude: The degree of

commitment is related to the level of involvement with an attitude object

• Compliance - formed to gain reward or avoid punishment. • Identification - formed to be similar to others • Internalization - has to become part of a person’s value

system (hard to change once formed) – The Consistency Principle:

• Principle of Cognitive Consistency: Consumers value harmony among their thoughts, feelings or behaviors to be consistent with other experiences

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Levels of Attitudinal Commitment

• By describing Cadillac as “my company,” the woman in this ad exhibits a high level of attitudinal commitment to her employer.

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Forming Attitudes (cont.)

• Cognitive Dissonance and Harmony among Attitudes:– Theory of Cognitive Dissonance: When a person is

confronted with inconsistencies among attitudes or behaviors, he or she will take action to reduce the dissonance by changing an attitude or modifying a behavior.

• Self-Perception Theory:– People maintain consistency by inferring that they must

maintain a positive attitude toward a product they have bought or consumed

• Foot-in-the-door technique:– Sales strategy based on the observation that consumers will

comply with a request if they have first agreed to comply with a smaller request

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Strategies of Attitude Change

• Changing the Basic Motivational Function

• Associating the Product With an Admired Group or Event

• Resolving Two Conflicting Attitudes• Altering Components of the

Multiattribute Model• Changing Beliefs About Competitors’

Brands

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Social Judgment Theory

• Social Judgment Theory:– People assimilate new information about Ao’s

based on what they already know or feel.– Attitudes of Acceptance and Rejection: People

differ in the information they find acceptable or unacceptable.

• Assimilation effect: Messages that fall within the latitude of acceptance tend to be seen as more consistent with one’s position than they actually are

• Contrast effect: Messages falling within the latitude of rejection tend to be seen as being farther from one’s position than they actually are

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Balance Theory• Triad:

– An attitude structure consisting of three elements• (1) A person and his/her perceptions of• (2) an attitude object, and• (3) some other person or object

• Unit relation:– An element is seen as belonging to or being part of the

other• Sentiment relation:

– Two elements are linked because one has expressed a preference for the other

• Marketing Applications of Balance Theory– Celebrity endorsements

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Alternative Routes to Restoring Balance in a Triad

Figure 7.2

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• Consumer researchers understand that consumers like to “bask in the reflected glory” of successful college athletic programs by wearing merchandise adorned with logos like the ones on the right.

• How do the different attitude theories explain this consumer phenomenon?

Discussion Question

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Attitude Models• Attitude Models:

– Specify the different elements that might work together to influence people’s evaluations of Ao’s

• Multiattribute Models:– Model that assumes a consumer’s Ao will depend on the

beliefs he or she has about several attributes toward the object

• Multiattribute Models Specify 3 Elements:– Attributes - characteristics of the attitude object – Beliefs - cognitions about the specific attitude object – Importance Weights - reflects the priority consumers

place on the object.

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Attitude Models

• Choosing products:– We often choose products because of their

association with a certain lifestyle.• Goal of Lifestyle Marketing:

– To allow consumers to pursue their chosen ways to enjoy life and express their social identities.

• Adopting Lifestyle Marketing:– Implies that we must look at patterns of behavior to

understand consumers

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The Fishbein Model

• Measures 3 components of attitude:– (1) Salient Beliefs - those beliefs about the object

that are considered during evaluation – (2) Object-attribute linkages - the probability that a

particular object has an important attribute – (3) Evaluation - of each of the important attributes

• Assumptions of the Fishbein Model:– Ability to specify all relevant choice attributes– Identification, weight, and summing of attributes

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Strategic applications of the multi-attribute model would include:

• 1) Capitalize on relative advantage.• 2) Strengthen perceived product/attribute

linkages.• 3) Add a new attribute.

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The Basic Multiattribute Model

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Strategic Applications of the Multiattribute Model

• Capitalize on Relative Advantage• Strengthen Perceived Product/Attribute

Linkages• Add a New Attribute

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Using Attitudes to Predict Behavior

• In many cases, knowledge of a person’s attitude is not a very good predictor of behavior

• Questionable link between attitude and behavior– Consumers love a commercial, but don’t buy the product

• The Extended Fishbein Model– Called the Theory of Reasoned Action– Contains several important additions to the original, which

improve its ability to predict behavior

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Theory of Reasoned Action

• A comprehensive theory of the interrelationship among attitudes,intentions, and behavior.

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The Theory of Reasoned Action

• Intentions Versus Behavior• Social Pressure:

– Subjective Norm (SN)• Normative Belief (NB): Belief that others believe an

action should or should not be taken• Motivation to Comply (MC): Degree to which

consumers take into account anticipated reactions

• Attitude Toward Buying:– Attitude toward the act of buying (Aact):

• How someone feels about buying due to the perceived consequences of a purchase

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A Simplified Version of the Theory of Reasoned Action

Beliefs that the behavior

leads to certain

outcomes

Evaluation of the

outcomes

Beliefs that specific

referents think I

should or should not

perform the behavior

Motivation to comply with the specific

referents

Subjective norm

Attitude toward the behavior

Intention

Behavior

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Obstacles to Predicting Behavior in the Theory of Reasoned Action

• Model is misapplied• Other obstacles:

– Model deals with actual behavior, not outcomes– Some outcomes are beyond the consumer’s control– The assumption of behavior as intentional may be invalid in

some cases– Attitude measures don’t correspond to the behavior they are

supposed to predict– Too large a time frame between attitude measure and

behavior measure– Attitude accessibility perspective:

• Behavior is a function of the person’s immediate perceptions of the Ao

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Cultural Roadblocks to the Theory of Reasoned Action

• Roadblocks that diminish the universality of the theory– Model was designed to predict voluntary acts– The relative impact of subject norms varies across

cultures– The model assumes that consumers are actively

thinking ahead and planning behaviors– A consumer that forms an intention claims that he or

she is in control of his or her actions

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Trying to Consume• Theory of Trying to Consume

– States that the criterion of behavior in the reasoned action model should be replaced with trying to reach a goal

• Sample issues that might be addressed:– Past frequency– Recency– Beliefs– Evaluations of consequences– The process– Expectations of success and failure– Subjective norms toward trying

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Figure 8.5 Ad Illustrating

the Theory of Trying to Consume

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Selected Examples of Potential Impediments That Might Impact Trying

POTENTIAL PERSONAL IMPEDIMENTSPOTENTIAL PERSONAL IMPEDIMENTS“I wonder whether my fingernails will be longer by the time of my wedding.”“I want to try to lose fifteen pounds by next summer.”“I’m going to try to get tickets for a Broadway show for your birthday.”“I’m going to attempt to give up smoking by my birthday.”“I am going to increase how often I go to the gym from two to four times a week.”

“Tonight, I’m not going to have dessert at the restaurant.”

POTENTIAL ENVIRONMENTAL IMPEDIMENTSPOTENTIAL ENVIRONMENTAL IMPEDIMENTS“The first ten people to call in will receive a free T-shirt.”“Sorry, the shoes didn’t come in this shipment from Italy.”“There are only three bottles of champagne in our stockroom. You better come in sometime today.”

“I am sorry. We cannot serve you. We are closing the restaurant because of a problem with the oven.”

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Theory of Trying (TT)

Figure 7.3

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Figure 8.8Encouraging

Trial

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Creating an Advertisement

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Tracking Attitudes over Time• Attitude-tracking program:

– An single-attitude survey is a snapshot in time– A program allows researchers to analyze attitude

trends during an extended period of time• Ongoing Tracking Studies

– Attitude tracking involves administration of a survey at regular intervals (e.g. Gallup Poll, Yankelovich Monitor)

– This activity is valuable for making strategic decisions

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I once felt that all.....

• Attitudes change with age