COGNITIVE PROCESSES IN THE ATTITUDE BEHAVIOR RELATION

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The proposed research has the long-term objective of providing an understanding of how individuals structure and cope with their social environments. Specifically, the research centers upon the functional value of attitudes and examines the process by which attitudes serve to simplify the behavior of a mentally healthy individual. Attitudes aid individuals to cope with the multitude and variety of stimuli encountered daily and, thus, contribute to effective daily functioning. A model of the various cognitive steps involved in the process by which attitudes guide behavior has been proposed. The model suggests that the necessary steps in this process include (1) that the attitude be activated from memory upon the individual's encountering the attitude subject, (2) that, through selective processing, the now activated attitude influence one's perceptions of the object in the immediate situation and one's definition of the event that is occurring, (3) that this definition of the event direct behavior toward the object. Past research has proven supportive of the model. The proposed work seeks to test the model further and to examine implications of the past research findings. Four projects, each of which involve a series of experiments, are planned. Project I concerns the conditions under which the proposed attitude-behavior process is most likely to operate. Project II examines the validity of the model in the context of social interaction. Project III focuses upon the development of an unobtrusive measure of attitude based upon the extent to which the attitude is activated from memory upon mere observation of the attitude object. Project IV directly examines the model's assumption regarding the functional value of attitudes that are highly accessible from memory and, in so doing, seeks to demonstrate the relevance of highly accessible attitudes to mental health concerns.