Consumer Attitude Formation and Change

Rajesh Verma ASIBAS

Attitudes

A learned predisposition to behave in a consistently favorable or unfavorable manner with respect to a given object.

What are Attitudes?

The attitude object Attitudes are a learned predisposition Attitudes have consistency Attitudes occur within a situation

Structural Models of Attitudes

Tricomponent Attitude Model Muliattribute Attitude Models The Trying-to-Consume Model Attitude-toward-the-ad Model

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 consumers 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

Multiattribute Attitude Models

Attitude models that examine the composition of consumer attitudes in terms of selected product attributes or beliefs.

AttitudeTowardBehavior Model

A model that proposes that a consumers attitude toward a specific behavior is a function of how strongly he or she believes that the action will lead to a specific outcome (either favorable or unfavorable).

Theory of Reasoned Action

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

Theory of Trying to Consume

An attitude theory designed to account for the many cases where the action or outcome is not certain but instead reflects the consumers attempt to consume (or purchase).

AttitudeToward-theAd Model

A model that proposes that a consumer forms various feelings (affects) and judgments (cognitions) as the result of exposure to an advertisement, which, in turn, affect the consumers attitude toward the ad and attitude toward the brand.

Issues in Attitude Formation

How attitudes are learned Sources of influence on attitude formation Personality factors

Strategies of Attitude Change

Changing the Basic Motivational Function Associating the Product With a Special Group, Event,or Cause Resolving Two Conflicting Attitudes Altering Components of the Multiattribute Model Changing Beliefs About Competitors Brands The Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM)

Functional Approach

An attitude-change theory that classifies attitudes in terms of four functions: utilitarian, ego-defensive value-expressive, and knowledge functions.

Four Basic Motivational Functions

The Utilitarian Function The Ego-defensive Function The Value-expressive Function The Knowledge Function

Altering Components of the Multiattribute Model

Changing the Relative Evaluation of Attributes Changing Brand Beliefs Adding an Attribute Changing the Overall Brand Rating

Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM)

A theory that suggests that a persons level of involvement during message processing is a critical factor in determining which route to persuasion is likely to be effective.

Why Might Behavior Precede Attitude Formation?

Cognitive Dissonance Theory Attribution Theory
Behave (Purchase)

Form Attitude

Form Attitude

Cognitive Dissonance Theory

Holds that discomfort or dissonance occurs when a consumer holds conflicting thoughts about a belief or an attitude object.

Postpurchase Dissonance

Cognitive dissonance that occurs after a consumer has made a purchase commitment. Consumers resolve this dissonance through a variety of strategies designed to confirm the wisdom of their choice.

Attribution Theory

A theory concerned with how people assign casualty to events and form or alter their attitudes as an outcome of assessing their own or other peoples behavior.

Issues in Attribution Theory

Self-perception Theory
Foot-In-The-Door Technique

Attributions Toward Others Attributions Toward Things How We Test Our Attributions

Criteria for Causal Attributions

Distinctiveness Consistency Over Time Consistency Over Modality Consensus