Read the passage below and answer the questions as instructed:-
A driver in the army went through an experience that transformed his life. On one mission, he narrowly escaped death although all his companions got killed. Wondering about the purpose of his life he gave up his job in the army, returned to the native village in Maharashtra and worked actively as a community leader. His commitment to community upliftment and his efforts completely changed the face of his village for which he was awarded by the State government.
One factor of attitude formation that exerts both good and bad influence on an attitude is _________________.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 4
The correct answer is Option (4) → Media influences
Option (1) Cognitive dissonance — Incorrect. This is Festinger’s concept of attitude change, not a factor of attitude formation. When two cognitions in an attitude do not fit together, one of them is changed in the direction of consonance, as a smoker who learns that smoking causes cancer must change one of the two ideas.
Option (2) Cognitive Consistency — Incorrect. This too is about attitude change: the components of an attitude should be consistent, and if they are not, the person feels discomfort and changes one of them. It is a principle of change, not a source from which attitudes are learnt.
Option (3) Personal teachings — Incorrect. The factors of attitude formation are the family and school environment, reference groups, personal experiences and media-related influences. Teaching by parents and teachers belongs to the first of these; ‘personal teachings’ is not a separate factor.
Option (4) Media influences — Correct. Audio-visual media, the Internet and even the books used in school shape attitudes, and the media can exert both good and bad influences. They make people better informed, but there may be no check on the information gathered, and so no control over the attitudes that form.
NCERT (2025-26): “4. Media-related Influences : … Technological advances in recent times have made audio-visual media and the Internet very powerful sources of information that lead to attitude formation and change. In addition, school level textbooks also influence attitude formation. These sources first strengthen the cognitive and affective components of attitudes, and subsequently may also affect the behavioural component. The media can exert both good and bad influences on attitudes. On one hand, the media and Internet make people better informed than other modes of communication. On the other hand, there may be no check on the nature of information being gathered, and therefore no control over the attitudes that are being formed, or the direction of change in the existing attitudes. The media can be used to create consumerist attitudes where none existed, and can also be harnessed to create positive attitudes to facilitate social harmony.…” |