Mkt 435 – How Customers Attitudes Are Influenced
How Attitudes Are InfluencedBenjamin GreenMKT/435December 14, 2015Dr. Maria ChurchHow Attitudes Are Influenced An attitude is a learned tendency to behave in a regularly positive or negative way toward a certain thing. When it comes to that of a person’s behavior that certain thing can be any number of objects including people, places, animals, food, etc., but in this case we are talking about my feelings towards my current marketing class (MKT/435). Mostly a person’s personal experience, friends, family, the Internet, media, and the ever growing social media strongly affect attitudes. A primary source of attitudes toward certain things is the person’s direct experiences in interacting with and being around those certain thing.  A person’s attitude can positively or negatively affect that persons behavior. It could be possible that a person could not always be aware of their attitude or how it is affecting their behavior. A person that has a positive attitude towards their work and their co-workers will have a positive influence to those surrounding them. A person’s positive attitude is often demonstrated in their behavior. People with a good attitude are usually productive and active and do everything they can to improve environment around them.  The same can be said for a person that shows a negative attitude, as they will behave in a negative manner. People with negative attitudes towards their work will likely affect those surrounding them in a negative way, and behave in a manner that will hurt productivity and effectiveness.
Motivation and Attitude TheoriesBehavior and attitude will interact differently depending on the attitude you are dealing with. If a person understands the different types of attitudes and the possible consequences it is useful in predicting how a person’s attitudes may manage their behavior. There are four attitude classifications that Daniel Katz uses, Knowledge, Utilitarian, Value Expressive, and Ego-defensive. The Utilitarian classification refers to how an individuals attitude is driven from self or a community interest. An example of Utilitarian could be a person that is getting a raise. When a person receives a raise it means more income. Employees who get a raise will have a positive attitude about getting a raise, which will more than likely positively affect their behavior in some instances. The Knowledge classification is another means by which people can form attitudes. When a company appeals to people and explain why it is assigning tasks or pursuing a strategy, it could generate a more positive outlook towards the task or strategy. However, if it is not explained or a person does not understand the task or strategy it could have a negative impact.