Introduction. In organisational behaviour, the concept of attitude occupies a central place because it strongly influences how people think, feel and behave at work. Whether an employee co-operates with colleagues, accepts change, remains loyal to the organisation or engages in complaints and absenteeism depends largely on his attitudes towards work, supervisor, co-workers, pay, union and organisation. Attitudes are not inborn; they are learnt and acquired over a period of time from different sources. A manager who understands how attitudes are formed is better equipped to maintain positive attitudes and to change unfavourable ones.
Meaning of Attitude (Brief Recap)
Attitude may be defined as a learned predisposition to think, feel and behave in a favourable or unfavourable manner towards a particular object, person, group or situation. Every attitude has three components – cognitive (beliefs, ideas), affective (feelings, emotions) and behavioural (tendency to act).
Since attitudes are learned, we can ask: “From where do people learn them?” The answer lies in the various sources of attitude formation discussed below.
Main Sources of Attitude
1. Family and Home Environment
- The family is the first and one of the most powerful agencies of socialisation. Parents, brothers, sisters and close relatives provide the earliest models of behaviour.
- Through daily interaction and observation, a child acquires attitudes towards:
- Work and discipline (e.g., respect for hard work or tendency to avoid effort),
- Authority (obedience vs. rebellion),
- Money, honesty, religion, education, and social relations.
- For example, a child growing up in a family that values punctuality, cleanliness and respect for others is likely to develop positive attitudes towards time, orderliness and interpersonal behaviour. These early attitudes later influence behaviour in the organisation.
2. Peer Group and Reference Groups
- Peer group includes friends and companions of similar age and status, especially during adolescence and early adulthood.
- People often want to be accepted by their peers and therefore adopt the attitudes prevailing in the group regarding dress, language, authority, politics, work ethics etc.
- Reference groups are groups to which a person relates himself psychologically and from which he seeks guidance for his own behaviour (e.g., trade union, professional association, religious group, favourite sports team or film star fan club).
- Individuals adopt the values and attitudes of their reference groups even if they are not formal members. For instance, an employee who identifies with a militant trade union may develop a negative attitude towards management.
3. Culture, Tradition and Social Class
- Every society has a particular culture consisting of shared values, customs, traditions, language and norms.
- Culture shapes attitudes towards:
- Authority and hierarchy (e.g., respect for elders and seniors),
- Individualism vs. collectivism,
- Material success vs. spiritual values,
- Gender roles, caste and social equality.
- Persons belonging to different cultures or sub-cultures may therefore develop different attitudes towards time, risk-taking, competition, cooperation etc.
- Social class (upper, middle, lower) also influences attitudes towards status symbols, education, consumption patterns and job preferences.
4. Education, School and College Experiences
- Formal education is an important source of attitudes. Schools and colleges do not only transmit knowledge; they also transmit values and social norms.
- Teachers, syllabus, peer interaction and extracurricular activities shape attitudes towards:
- Self-confidence and achievement,
- Rules and discipline,
- Teamwork, leadership, cooperation and competition,
- Social issues like equality, environment, corruption, and community service.
- For example, business and management education often promotes attitudes favourable to efficiency, innovation and rational decision-making.
5. Direct Personal Experience
- Perhaps the most powerful source of attitude is an individual’s own direct experience with people, objects and situations.
- When experiences are:
- Pleasant and rewarding → positive attitudes are formed.
- Unpleasant, frustrating or punishing → negative attitudes are formed.
- For example:
- If an employee receives appreciation and support from his supervisor, he develops a favourable attitude towards the supervisor and the organisation.
- If he repeatedly experiences unfair treatment or humiliation, he develops a hostile attitude towards management.
- Since direct experiences are vivid and emotionally charged, attitudes based on them are strong and resistant to change.
6. Association, Conditioning and Reinforcement
Modern learning theory explains attitude formation through conditioning and reinforcement:
- Classical conditioning: When a neutral object is repeatedly paired with a positive or negative stimulus, the object itself starts evoking similar feelings. For example, if a new brand of product is always advertised with pleasant music and attractive scenes, people may develop a positive attitude towards the brand.
- Operant conditioning (reinforcement): When a behaviour or response is followed by reward (praise, bonus, promotion), the underlying attitude becomes stronger and more positive; when behaviour is punished or ignored, the attitude weakens or turns negative.
- Association and linkage: People may transfer their feelings about one object to another associated with it. For example, positive feelings about a respected leader may be transferred to the organisation or policy supported by that leader.
7. Modelling and Imitation (Observational Learning)
- Individuals especially children and young employees learn attitudes by observing significant others – parents, teachers, peers, supervisors, top managers, opinion leaders and celebrities.
- When they see such models being rewarded and admired for certain behaviours, they imitate the behaviour and underlying attitudes.
- For example, if workers see a colleague receiving promotion because of loyalty to the union, they may develop favourable attitudes towards unionism. If they observe that innovative employees are appreciated and promoted, they may adopt a positive attitude towards creativity and change.
8. Mass Media, Social Media and Communication
- Newspapers, magazines, radio, television, films, internet and social media (Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, etc.) are powerful instruments for shaping public opinion and attitudes.
- Through news, features, advertisements, documentaries and posts, media provide information and emotional appeals which influence attitudes towards:
- Products and brands,
- Political parties and social issues,
- Work, career, success and lifestyle.
- In organisational context, company newsletters, house journals, internal emails and intranet messages also shape employee attitudes towards management policies, safety practices and ethical standards.
9. Religious Institutions and Ethical Teachings
- Religious beliefs, scriptures, rituals and institutions provide strong guidance regarding what is right or wrong, moral or immoral.
- They influence attitudes towards honesty, charity, equality, hard work, respect for life and material possessions.
- For many individuals, religious attitudes are deeply rooted and affect their work behaviour such as truthfulness, fairness and concern for others.
10. Economic and Work-Related Experiences
- Economic conditions (prosperity, unemployment, inflation) and experiences at the workplace are major sources of attitudes, particularly work-related attitudes like job satisfaction, organisational commitment and involvement.
- For instance:
- Stable income, fair wages and good working conditions create favourable attitudes towards the job and organisation.
- Job insecurity, low pay, unsafe conditions and lack of career prospects generate negative attitudes, cynicism and withdrawal behaviour.
11. Organisational Policies, Culture and Leadership Style
- The internal environment of the organisation – policies, rules, reward system, communication pattern and culture – strongly influences attitude formation.
- Supportive leadership, participation in decision-making, opportunities for growth and recognition develop positive attitudes like trust, loyalty and commitment.
- On the other hand, autocratic leadership, excessive control, absence of recognition and unfair treatment lead to negative attitudes such as distrust, resistance and apathy.
12. Personality and Cognitive Structure (Internal Source)
- While attitudes are largely learned from the environment, the individual’s own personality and way of thinking (cognitive structure) influence how he receives and organises experiences.
- For example, people high in authoritarianism tend to develop rigid attitudes, whereas those high in open-mindedness and tolerance develop flexible, liberal attitudes.
Inter-Relationship Among Sources
It is important to note that these sources do not operate in isolation. They often interact and reinforce each other:
- A child brought up in a particular culture first acquires basic attitudes from the family; these are later strengthened or modified by school, peer group and media.
- At the workplace, organisational policies and leadership style interact with employees’ earlier attitudes to produce new, work-specific attitudes.
- Therefore, an individual’s attitude at any point of time is the result of a complex combination of all these sources over many years.
Managerial Implications
For managers and organisations, understanding sources of attitude has several practical implications:
- Selection and placement processes should consider background factors (education, family climate, value orientation) that influence basic attitudes relevant to the job.
- Orientation and training programmes can be designed to provide positive learning experiences and role models so that favourable attitudes towards quality, safety, customer service and ethics are developed.
- Internal communication, counselling and leadership behaviour should be used consciously to strengthen desirable attitudes and to modify negative ones.
- Since direct work experiences are powerful, management must ensure fair treatment, recognition and opportunities to create positive attitudes.
Conclusion. To conclude, attitudes are not inherited; they are learned predispositions formed through various sources such as family, peer and reference groups, culture and social class, education, direct personal experiences, conditioning and reinforcement, modelling and imitation, mass media and communication, religious teachings, economic and work experiences, organisational climate and leadership, and the individual’s own personality structure. These sources operate jointly over time to shape how people think, feel and behave towards different objects and situations. For a manager, knowledge of these sources is extremely important, because it provides the foundation for understanding employee behaviour, predicting their reactions and designing appropriate programmes for attitude development and change. By creating favourable experiences and providing positive models within the organisation, management can gradually build constructive attitudes that support high performance, cooperation and organisational effectiveness.