ABSTRACT
Within the domain of social psychology, no concept has enjoyed more attention, at both a theoretical and an empirical level, than the attitude construct. Indeed, it has been referred to as “the most distinctive and indispensable concept” in social psychology (Allport, 1935, p. 798). The centrality of the attitude construct is reflected in the many and diverse theoretical statements it has spawned. In the past 50 years, researchers have developed theories of attitude formation (Bem, 1967, 1972; Staats & Staats, 1958), attitude structure (Bem, 1972; Fishbein & Ajzen, 1975; Heider, 1958; Kothandapani, 1971), attitude change (Festinger, 1957; Hovland, Janis, & Kelley, 1953; McGuire, 1969; Osgood & Tannenbaum, 1955; Petty & Cacioppo, 1981, 1986; Sherif & Hovland, 1961; Sherif & Sherif, 1967; Zajonc, 1968), and attitude-behavior relations (Bem, 1967; Fazio & Zanna, 1981; Norman, 1975; Snyder, 1982; Zanna, Olson, & Fazio, 1980).
