Attitudes

Dr .
Suvarna Sen
Concept of Attitudes
The attitudes of an individual

generally remain unchanged for a
prolonged period of time unless he
is influenced by external forces.
Attitudes are evaluative statements
that can be either favorable or
unfavorable.
For example, if a person does not like
a certain aspect of his job, he is said to
have
a negative attitude towards that
assignment.
Attitudes refer to feeling and beliefs
held by an individual towards an object (or
event or person).
Attitudes can be characterized in
three ways:
They tend to persist unless something is done to

change them.
Attitudes can fall anywhere along a continuum

from very favorable to very unfavorable.
Attitudes are directed toward some object about

which a person has feelings and beliefs.
Sources of Attitudes
Parent and family

Personal experience
Association
Peer groups and society
Models
Institutional factors
Changing the Attitudes
 The characteristics of the

communicator
 The method of communication
 The characteristics of the
person to be influenced
 Situational factors
 New Experiences
Types of Attitudes
Job satisfaction
Outcomes of Job satisfaction
Job involvement
Organizational commitment
Job satisfaction
The work itself

Pay
Promotion opportunities
Supervision
Coworkers
Working Conditions
Source of Job Satisfaction
Mentally Challenging Work

Equitable Rewards
Supportive Working Conditions
Supportive Colleagues
Personality – Job Fit
Heredity/Genes
Outcomes of job satisfaction
Satisfaction and productivity

Satisfaction and turnover
Satisfaction and absenteeism
Other effects of job satisfaction
Organizational Commitment
 Affective commitment
 A willingness to exert considerable effort on behalf of the
organization;
 Continuance commitment
 A desire to remain with the organization
 Normative commitment
 A belief in and acceptance of the organization’s goals and
values
Functions of
Attitudes
The adjustment function

The ego-defensive
function
The value-expression
function
The knowledge function
Attitudes and Consistency
People may change their

attitudes so that they do not
contradict their actions.
People try to achieve

consistency in their various
attitudes.
People also try to maintain a consistency
between behavior and attitudes.
Leon Festinger proposed the theory of

cognitive dissonance to explain the
relationship between attitude and
behavior.
Cognitive Dissonance Theory
 Individuals are uncomfortable with any

form of inconsistency and try to reduce
dissonance.
 However no individual can completely
eliminate dissonance.
 The desired to reduce dissonance
dependents on the extent of control they
have over the elements causing
dissonance.
Individuals can deal with
dissonance in different ways
Choose between the various alternatives

available
Minimize the problem
Change own attitude toward the problem
Effects of various work factors on Job Satisfaction
Work Factors Effects
Work Itself Mentally challenging work that the individual can
successfully accomplish is satisfying
Physical Demands Tiring work is dissatisfying

Personal Interest Personally interesting work is satisfying
Reward Structure Rewards that are equitable and that provide
accurate feedback for performance are satisfying
Working Conditions
Physical Satisfaction depends on the match between

working conditions and physical needs
Goal Attainment Working conditions that promote goal attainment

are satisfying.
Work Factors Effects
Self High self esteem is conducive to job satisfaction
Others in the Individuals will be satisfied with supervisors, co-

organization workers, or subordinates who help them attain
rewards. Also, individuals will be more satisfied
with colleagues who see things the same way they
do.
Organization and Individuals will be satisfied with organizations

Management that have policies and procedures designed to
help them.
Individuals will be dissatisfied with conflicting
roles and/or ambiguous roles imposed by the
organization.

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Dr .

The attitudes of an individual

They tend to persist unless something is done to

Attitudes can fall anywhere along a continuum

Attitudes are directed toward some object about

Parent and family

 The characteristics of the

The work itself

Mentally Challenging Work

Satisfaction and productivity

The adjustment function

People may change their

People try to achieve

Leon Festinger proposed the theory of

 Individuals are uncomfortable with any

Choose between the various alternatives

Physical Demands Tiring work is dissatisfying

Physical Satisfaction depends on the match between

Goal Attainment Working conditions that promote goal attainment

Others in the Individuals will be satisfied with supervisors, co-

Organization and Individuals will be satisfied with organizations

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