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.
After narrowly escaping from death and seeing his companion dead, the driver’s life changed. His experience played a significant role in shaping his _______.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → Attitude
Option (1) Temperament — Incorrect. Temperament is a biologically based characteristic way of reacting. Being inborn, it is not what a single experience in adult life reshapes.
Option (2) Attitude — Correct. An attitude is a state of the mind, a set of views about a topic with an evaluative feature, an emotional component and a tendency to act. Many attitudes are formed through direct personal experiences which bring about a drastic change in our attitude towards people and our own life. The driver’s escape gave him a lasting attitude of commitment to community upliftment, and he acted on it.
Option (3) Impression formation — Incorrect. Impression formation is the process by which a person (the perceiver) forms an idea of what another person (the target) is like, by selecting, organising and drawing an inference from bits of information about her or him. The driver’s experience changed his own outlook on life, not his impression of some other person.
Option (4) Attribution — Incorrect. Attribution means assigning a cause for someone’s behaviour, explaining why a person acted in a particular way. The passage describes a change in what he valued and did, not an explanation of anyone’s behaviour.
NCERT (2025-26): “Nature and Components of Attitudes … All definitions of attitudes agree that an attitude is a state of the mind, a set of views, or thoughts, regarding some topic (called the ‘attitude object’), which have an evaluative feature (positive, negative or neutral quality). It is accompanied by an emotional component, and a tendency to act in a particular way with regard to the attitude object. The thought component is referred to as the cognitive aspect, the emotional component is known as the affective aspect, and the tendency to act is called the behavioural (or conative) aspect.…” “3. Personal Experiences : … Many attitudes are formed, not in the family environment or through reference groups, but through direct personal experiences which bring about a drastic change in our attitude towards people and our own life. Here is a real-life example. A driver in the army went through a personal experience that transformed his life. On one mission, he narrowly escaped death although all his companions got killed. Wondering about the purpose of his own life, he gave up his job in the army, returned to his native village in Maharashtra, and worked actively as a community leader. Through a purely personal experience this individual evolved a strong positive attitude towards community upliftment. His efforts completely changed the face of his village.…” |