Attitude and Social Cognition
Class 12 · Psychology
4 ideas in Class 12 Psychology, explained in plain words, with games and quizzes to practise.
Nature of Attitudes
Part of: Attitudes and their making
An attitude is a learned stand on a topic, joining three strands: feeling about it, acts toward it and facts held on it. Loving folk songs, joining a march and knowing song roots can all belong to one stand. Stands form slowly and steer acts, though settings can block them.
Why it matters. Learners often read one act as full proof of a stand. Three strands teach fairer reading of self and others.
Key words
- Attitude
- : A learned stand on a topic.
- Affective part
- : Feeling strand of a stand.
- Behavioural part
- : Acting strand of a stand.
- Cognitive part
- : Knowing strand of a stand.
- Social cognition
- : Reading of the social world.
Try it in two minutes
- Ask the learner to name one stand they hold.
- Ask what feeling, act and fact belong to it.
- Ask which strand shows strongest.
- Ask when setting blocked that stand.
Try at home. Map one family stand into feeling, act and fact lines.
Forming and Changing Attitudes
Part of: Attitudes and their making
Stands form through rewards, home models, peers, direct contact and repeated messages. They shift with source trust, message style and listener readiness: mild fear moves while terror freezes, and aware minds weigh both sides. Firsthand contact reshapes faster than hearsay.
Why it matters. Learners often parrot ads or fear appeals blindly. Knowing makers and movers builds resistance to cheap persuasion.
Key words
- Formation
- : Building of a stand over time.
- Reference group
- : Group whose norms pull stands.
- Persuasion
- : Messages shifting stands.
- Fear appeal
- : Scare message moving acts.
- Direct contact
- : Firsthand meeting reshaping views.
Try it in two minutes
- Ask the learner whose stand they copied at home.
- Ask what repeated message shaped them.
- Ask what firsthand contact changed.
- Ask what fear message moved or froze them.
Try at home. Track one ad for a week and note how repeats shift your stand.
Balance and Attitude-Behaviour Link
Part of: Balance and bias
Minds seek fit: clashing thoughts press change, and liked sides pull agreement. Small prizes can force inner reasons for acts. Yet stands guide acts only when strong, clear and backed by setting: greens may litter where bins miss, and habits block vows.
Why it matters. Learners often preach green but litter. Knowing links and blocks turns vows into acts.
Key words
- Balance
- : Fit among linked views.
- Cognitive dissonance
- : Clash of thoughts pressing change.
- Attitude-behaviour link
- : When stands guide acts.
- Two-sided message
- : Both sides told to aware minds.
- Forced compliance
- : Act for a small prize shifting views.
Try it in two minutes
- Ask the learner when two of their views clashed.
- Ask how they eased the clash.
- Ask when a stand failed to guide an act.
- Ask what habit or setting blocked it.
Try at home. Note one stand-act gap this week and name its blocker.
Prejudice and Handling Bias
Part of: Balance and bias
Fixed group beliefs are stereotypes; unfair feelings are prejudice and unfair acts are discrimination. Rivalry, blame of weak groups and early learning feed bias. Equal shared work, true contact and fair teaching soften it, while mere lectures rarely move hearts.
Why it matters. Bias quietly steers school and street acts. Knowing feeds and fixes helps learners act fairly.
Key words
- Stereotype
- : Fixed belief about a group.
- Prejudice
- : Unfair feeling toward a group.
- Discrimination
- : Unfair act against a group.
- Scapegoating
- : Blaming weak groups for ills.
- Interdependence
- : Shared goals binding groups.
Try it in two minutes
- Ask the learner for one fixed group belief they hear.
- Ask what unfair act could flow from it.
- Ask what rivalry or blame feeds it.
- Ask what shared work could soften it.
Try at home. Team with an unlike peer on one task and note attitude shifts.
What your child will practise
- Balance and Attitude-Behaviour Link: Space Quick Fire (Quick Fire)
- Forming and Changing Attitudes: Candy Puzzle (Clue Puzzle)
- Forming and Changing Attitudes: Space Quest (Flip and Match)
- Nature of Attitudes: Jungle Quick Fire (Quick Fire)
- Prejudice and Handling Bias: Space Puzzle (Clue Puzzle)
- Quiz: Balance and Attitude-Behaviour Link (8 questions)
- Quiz: Forming and Changing Attitudes (8 questions)
- Quiz: Nature of Attitudes (8 questions)
- Quiz: Prejudice and Handling Bias (8 questions)