In the process of attitude change, the concept of balance, proposed by Fritz Heider states that imbalance is found when:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → all three sides of the P-O-X triangle are negative
Heider’s P-O-X triangle shows the relations between P, the person whose attitude is studied, O, another person, and X, the attitude object. Each side (P-O, O-X, P-X) is positive or negative. An attitude changes when there is a state of imbalance, because imbalance is logically uncomfortable, and the change is in the direction of balance. A simple check: multiply the three signs; a negative product means imbalance, a positive product means balance.
Option (1) all three sides of the P-O-X triangle are negative — Correct. Three negative signs give a negative product, so imbalance is found when all three sides of the P-O-X triangle are negative.
Option (2) all three sides of P-O-X triangle are positive — Incorrect. All three sides positive is a state of balance: P likes O, and both like X.
Option (3) two sides of P-O-X triangle are negative and one side is positive — Incorrect. Two negatives and one positive also give balance; for example, P dislikes O, and they hold opposite attitudes towards X.
Option (4) the P-O side is positive, and the P-X and O-X sides are both negative — Incorrect. Here two sides are negative and one side is positive, so the product of the signs is positive: a state of balance. P likes O, and both P and O dislike X, so the two persons agree about X and there is nothing that would make the attitude change.
Note: The original NTA paper printed Option (4) as ‘one side of P-O-X triangle is negative and two sides are positive’. The official NTA Answer Key accepted both Option (1) and Option (4) as correct, and rightly so, because the book says that imbalance is found when all three sides are negative and also when two sides are positive and one side is negative. Therefore, to leave a single correct answer, Option (4) has been changed to ‘the P-O side is positive, and the P-X and O-X sides are both negative’, which is a state of balance, for the benefit of students. Option (1), the other answer accepted by NTA, is marked as the answer.
NCERT (2025-26): “Process of Attitude Change … (a) The concept of balance, proposed by Fritz Heider is sometimes described in the form of the ‘P-O-X’ triangle, which represents the relationships between three aspects or components of the attitude. P is the person whose attitude is being studied, O is another person, and X is the topic towards which the attitude is being studied (attitude object). It is also possible that all three are persons. The basic idea is that an attitude changes if there is a state of imbalance between the P-O attitude, O-X attitude, and P-X attitude. This is because imbalance is logically uncomfortable. Therefore, the attitude changes in the direction of balance. Imbalance is found when (i) all three sides of the P-O-X triangle are negative, or (ii) two sides are positive, and one side is negative. Balance is found when (i) all three sides are positive, or (ii) two sides are negative, and one side is positive.…” |