Chapter 7

Attitudes and
Persuasion

CONSUMER
BEHAVIOR, 10e
Michael R. Solomon

7-1
Copyright 2013 Pearson Education

Contents

1. The nature and power of attitudes

2. How are attitudes created
3. How do marketers change attitudes

1. The Power of Attitudes

Attitudes: opinions or feelings about

people, objects, advertisements, or issues

Attitude object (AO): anything toward

which one has an attitude

Consumers have attitudes toward a wide

range of attitude objects,

- from very product-specific behaviors (e.g.,

you use Crest toothpaste rather than
Colgate)

- to more general, consumption-related

behaviors (e.g., how often you should
brush your teeth)
Copyright 2013 Pearson Education

2-4

Functional Theory of Attitudes

How attitudes facilitate behaviour?
UTILITARIAN
FUNCTION

VALUE-EXPRESSIVE
FUNCTION

Relates to rewards
and punishments

Expresses consumers
values or self-concept

EGO-DEFENSIVE
FUNCTION
Protect ourselves from
external threats
or internal feelings

KNOWLEDGE
FUNCTION
Need for order, structure,
or meaning

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What are the functions?

What are the functions?

For Reflection
Imagine that you work for the marketing
department of your college or university
and have segmented students into four
different clusters, each representing one of
the four functions identified by Katz.
Develop a marketing strategy based on
each of the four functions to motivate
students to stay in school and complete
their degrees.
Copyright 2013 Pearson Education

7-8

The ABC Model of Attitudes

Cognition

Affect

Behaviour

The hierarchies of effects

Attitudes are more complex than they first

appear.
Problemsolving
process.
Bases on
good or bad
experiences
An
emotional
response.

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Reflection

Share a decision you made following the

three learning hierarchies:
Think Feel Do
Think Do Feel
Feel Do Think
Which one has effect on the situation of:
Purchasing clothes
Purchasing mobile phones?
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2. How do we form attitudes?

Attitude Commitment
INTERNALIZATION
Highest level: deep-seated attitudes become
part of consumers value system

IDENTIFICATION
Mid-level: attitudes formed in order to conform
to another person or group

COMPLIANCE
Lowest level: consumer forms attitude because
it gains rewards or avoids punishments

For Reflection

Share a commitment youve made at each

of the three levels of commitment:
Internalization
Identification
Compliance

Can you feel the variations in commitment

for the three types? Explain.

Copyright 2013 Pearson Education

7-14

The consistency principles

A need to maintain consistency among all of
our attitudinal components often motivates
us to alter one or more of them

We value/seek harmony among thoughts,

feelings, and behaviors

We will change components to make them

consistent

Theory of cognitive dissonance

Relates to the theory of cognitive

dissonance we take action to resolve
dissonance when our attitudes and
behaviors are inconsistent
"I know smoking cigarettes causes cancer" and "I
smoke cigarettes

2 elements: cognitive and behavior are

dissonant feeling of discomfort reduce
dissonance by eliminating, adding, or changing
elements.
Copyright 2013 Pearson Education

2-16

Theory of Cognitive Dissonance

Theory of Cognitive Dissonance

Cognitive
Dissonance

Reflection

What are your attitudes toward class

starting at 6.30am?
What are your behaviours?

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Self-Perception Theory

FOOT-IN-THE-DOOR TECHNIQUE
Consumer is more likely to comply with a request if he has first agreed to
comply with a smaller request

LOW-BALL TECHNIQUE
Person is asked for a small favor and is informed after agreeing to it that it will
be very costly.

DOOR-IN-THE-FACE TECHNIQUE
Person is first asked to do something extreme (which he refuses), then asked
to do something smaller.

Copyright 2013 Pearson Education

7-20

Self-perception theory
If you want someone to believe or feel
something, first get them to do it

Social Judgment Theory

We assimilate new information about

attitude objects in light of what we already
know/feel
Initial attitude = frame of reference
Latitudes of acceptance and rejection
Assimilation effects
Contrast effects
Example: Choosy mothers choose Jif
Peanut Butter
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7-22

Balance Theory

Considers how a person might perceive

relations among different attitude objects
and how he might alter attitudes to
maintain consistency

Triad attitude structures:

Person
Perception of attitude object
Perception of other person/object
Copyright 2013 Pearson Education

7-23

Figure 7.2 Balance Theory

Copyright 2013 Pearson Education

7-24

Watch the ad
How can it change attitude towards girls?

Attitude models

We use attitude models to identifyspecific

components and combine them to predict
a consumers overall attitude toward a
product or brand

Multi-attribute models assume that a

consumers attitude toward an object
depends on the beliefs he has about
several attributes

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The Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA)

Behavioral intentions -- uncontrollable

factors limit the ability to predict future

Social pressure -- other people may have

powerful influence in our decision

Attitude toward buying (Aact) -- attitude

toward the act of buying, not just the
product

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Structure of the TRA

3. How Do Marketers Change Attitudes?

Reciprocity

Scarcity

Authority

Consistency

Liking

Consensus

(Self-study - Chapter 8, p.388)

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Communication

The communications model identifies

several important components for
marketers when they try to change
consumers attitudes toward products and
services.

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Figure 7.4
The Traditional Communications Model

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New method of communication

The consumer who processes a message

is not necessarily the passive receiver of
information marketers once believed him
or her to be.

Figure 7.5
An Updated Communications Model

The message

The way a marketer structures his or her

message determines how persuasive it will
be.

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Good vs. Bad Messages

Positive Effects

Negative Effects

Showing convenience of use

Extensive information on
components, ingredients, nutrition

Showing new product/improved

features

Outdoor setting (message gets

lost)

Casting background (i.e., people

are incidental to message)

Large number of onscreen

characters

Indirect comparison to other

products

Graphic displays

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Good ad

Boring ads

How Do We Structure Arguments?

One-sided: supportive arguments

Two-sided: both positive and negative
information
Refutational argument: negative issue is
raised, then dismissed
Positive attributes should refute
presented negative attributes
Effective with well-educated and not-yetloyal audiences
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Two-sided message

Comparative Advertising

Comparative advertising: message

compares two+ recognizable brands on
specific attributes
Negative outcomes include source
derogation

Types of Message Appeals

Emotional versus Rational Appeals
Sex Appeals
Humorous Appeals
Fear Appeals

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Dont be stupid

For Reflection

What are the types of massage appeals in

the ad?

What benefits were communicated in the

ad?

Is the message implicit or explicit?

Explain.

Summary remarks
Its important to understand the nature and
power of attitudes
Three components make up an attitude:
beliefs, affect, and behavioral intentions
We form attitudes in several ways
Its important to maintain consistency
Attitude models may help to predict the
attitude toward a product
Several important components of
communication