Attitudes: Definition, Examples, & Causes

Attitudes are important because they can determine how we interact with the world around us. Attitude can also be an important predictor of various areas of well-being. Having a more positive affect, or attitude, toward life in general, has been associated with a number of benefits.

Benefits of Positive Attitude:

• Higher income
• Greater job satisfaction
• Better social relationships
• Lower probability of drug use
• Better physical well-being
• Better problem-solving
• More creativity
• Positive perceptions of self and others (Lyubomirsky et al., 2005)

As you can see, your attitude can affect almost every aspect of your life including physical health, social relationships, and your career. Do you feel like you have a positive attitude or does negativity get in your way? Keep reading to learn more about how attitudes are formed and what you can do to change them if you want to. ​

• Joyce is a nurse in the pediatric unit of a local hospital. She enjoys interacting with children and their parents. Even though Joyce sees awful events on a daily basis, she retains her positive attitude while working with patients. As a result, she is often able to successfully interact with children who don’t want to cooperate. Parents and their children comment on how her positive attitude is a spot of sunshine in an otherwise difficult time.
• Hasan immigrated to America from India in pursuit of higher education. Even though he speaks little English, his driven attitude pushes him forward. As a result of his persistence, he gets a job working in a lab at a university that will also pay for his school. If he had not been so driven, he might not have ever found this wonderful opportunity.

Attitudes have been studied in psychology for quite some time as scientists have tried to figure out how people can hold such vastly different beliefs. A few basic theoretical frameworks have been developed. According to scientists, attitude development can be described in different contexts which will be discussed in more detail below.
The ABCs of AttitudeThis framework was developed in the 1970s and is commonly referred to as the “ABCs of Attitude”. Each of the three components of this model put together is thought to make up your attitude. Let’s explore the three components below (Hill et al., 1977). 

• A – Affective: The feelings (or affect) you have about something can show your attitude. 
• B – Behavioral: Your actions, or behavior, towards a situation or person reveals your attitude. 
• C – Cognitive: Your thoughts or beliefs about something influence your attitude.
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This framework states that your feelings, actions, and beliefs about someone or something determine your attitude. To test this theory out, try and think about something which you have a positive attitude toward such as a friend, pet, or favorite hobby. You likely have positive feelings, behaviors, and thoughts toward this thing. To explore this theory further, check out the video below.

Another psychological framework for attitude development leans toward a social explanation. Any number of the things in your environment can influence your attitude including but not limited to family, friends, media, culture, and conditioning. Many children share the same attitudes as their parents simply because that is what they have been exposed to and are familiar with. The attitude of those around can be contagious if you are not mindful. Paying close attention to people’s words and behaviors can help you figure out what attitudes are helpful for you to adopt and what attitudes are detrimental to self-growth and personal development.

Values are strongly held beliefs that are key to shaping your overall attitude. For example, many people are organ donors because they believe in the value of preserving human life. Others do not participate in organ donation themselves due to religious values. Neither attitude is necessarily wrong nor right– this example simply illustrates how differing beliefs and values can shape attitude. 

In general, values and beliefs are more fixed than attitudes. One reason for this is that knowledge is an integral part of forming an attitude (Hill et al., 1977). When you acquire new or different knowledge, this may help shift or change your attitude, even if only slightly. This is exciting because it means you have the ability to modify your attitude if it is hurting rather than helping you.

Mindfulness is the practice of being fully in your body and appreciating each moment. This has become increasingly difficult with the demands on our attention. When we are distracted by television, video games, smartphones, or other technology, we do not have the ability to stay present and observe our thoughts and the environment around us. 

Mindfulness can be a challenging experience if you are used to numbing yourself with distractions. Once you start becoming more mindful, both the good and bad aspects of your life and society can come into view. Even though mindfulness can make the darker parts of your life come into view, it also brings forth the parts of your life that shine bright. Approaching life with an attitude of mindfulness has been shown to have a number of benefits. 

Benefits of Attitudes of Mindfulness:

• Enhanced self-awareness
• More self-regulated behavior
• Positive emotional states 
• A decline in mood disturbances
• A decline in stress (Brown & Ryan, 2003)

Do you try to practice mindfulness or is this something you struggle with? With time and patience, you can work toward trying to develop a more mindful attitude. Try the following mindfulness exercise to get started.

 Exercise: Mindfulness Meditation

1. Set aside 10-15 minutes and find a quiet, comfortable space.
2. Make yourself comfortable, either lying down or sitting up, and start to focus on your breathing. 
3. Inhale for a count of 4 then exhale for a count of 8.
4. If outside thoughts try to pull away your attention, let them float through your mind and return your attention to your breath.
5. Try and remain present in your body and be aware of each inhale and exhale in this exercise.

Scientists try to make the world a better place by researching and answering questions. People who work in science are often inquisitive and want to find out how the world works. According to a study done in 2017, there are six components to a scientific attitude (Ekawati).

Components of an Attitude of Science: 

• Curiosity
• Objectivity
• Suspended judgment
• Open-mindedness
• Honesty
• Perseverance

Do you have an interest in science? Working on developing these traits might help you succeed. For example, perseverance is a helpful quality in a scientist because you usually have to try many different methods and experiments before getting it right. Open-mindedness is also an important trait in science because you can never predict with 100% accuracy what is going to happen.

​If you are in a position of leadership, your attitude can greatly affect those around you. It is important to remember that as a leader you serve as a role model. Demonstrating the characteristics you want to see such as positivity, dedication, and perseverance will encourage those you are leading to strive toward these qualities as well.

Your attitude can have an immense effect on your success, either good or bad. One study found that employees who demonstrated a positive attitude and more optimism had better employment probability and wage earnings than employees with a negative attitude (Mohanty, 2012). This shows that your attitude toward work can affect how successful your career is. 

Developing an attitude of success can help drive you toward your goals. A well-known quote from Henry Ford says, “Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t, you’re right.” This means that if you have a negative attitude and feel defeated you probably won’t try very hard. On the other hand, if you have a positive attitude and feel empowered, you are more likely to take action and move one step closer to your goals. 

A key component to developing an attitude of success is learning to use mistakes and failures as lessons rather than letting them drag you down. No one is perfect–we all make mistakes. The next time you fail at something, try to see the lesson in the failure and then pick yourself up and try again.

There might be times in your life when you need an “attitude adjustment”. This might happen if you fall into a rut of negative thinking. Consider the following quotes when you need a dose of inspiration toward a more positive attitude. 

• “Adopting the right attitude can convert a negative stress into a positive one.” — Hans Selye
• “Your attitude can take you forward or your attitude can take you down. The choice is always yours!” — Catherine Pulsifer
• “Having a positive attitude isn’t wishy-washy, it’s a concrete and intelligent way to view problems, challenges, and obstacles.” — Jeff Moore
• “If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude.” — Maya Angelou
• “Ability is what you’re capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you do it.” — Lou Holtz
• “The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes.” — William James

• Brown, K. W., & Ryan, R. M. (2003). The benefits of being present: Mindfulness and its role in psychological well-being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 84(4), 822–848. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.84.4.822 
• Hill, R. J., Fishbein, M., & Ajzen, I. (1977). Belief, Attitude, Intention, and Behavior: An Introduction to Theory and Research. Contemporary Sociology, 6(2), 244. https://doi.org/10.2307/2065853  
• Lyubomirsky, S., King, L., & Diener, E. (2005). The benefits of frequent positive affect: Does happiness lead to success? Psychological Bulletin, 131(6), 803–855. 
• Mohanty, M. S. (2012). Effects of positive attitude and optimism on wage and employment: A double selection approach. The Journal of Socio-Economics, 41(3), 304–316. 
• Svenningsson, J., Höst, G., Hultén, M., & Hallström, J. (2021). Students’ attitudes toward technology: Exploring the relationship among affective, cognitive and behavioral components of the attitude construct. International Journal of Technology and Design Education, 32(3), 1531–1551.