Explain how situational factors are likely to influence the degree of consistency between attitudes and behavior.
Attitude is learned predilection with respect to an object be it a product, service, brand, marketing strategy, advertisement etc. to behave in a consistently favorable or unfavorable way.
Behavior is the way in which an organism acts at different situations. Behaviors are influenced by attitude, in other words, attitude are one determinant factor of behavior.
Attitude and behaviors are largely influenced by situational factors such as time, place, social environment, cultural environment, and economic conditions. Attitude represent the predispositions of the behavior. Behavior can be predicted by identifying the attitude.
A person may show different and varied attitudes to the same object in different situations. For example, a boy may see an advertisement of a cologne for which he has a positive attitude. Thus, he wants to purchase it but his economic condition is not allowing him to do that. This is turn affects her buying behavior.
The same boy gets a new job and purchases the cologne so his behavior is changed when his economic conditions improved. However, his attitude remains the same for the product. This way the behaviors are changed rapidly for an object according to situations.
Because attitudes are learned predispositions to respond, why don’t marketers and consumer researchers just measure purchase behavior and forget attitudes?
An attitude is a predisposition to act because attitude is not by birth; they create their occurrence with the span of time. Marketers need to reinforce favorable attitudes and also change in unfavorable and both these are marketing objectives.
Knowledge of attitude is precious, because it can be used to predict behavior before it occurs. In addition, attitudes have many modules, such as evaluation, perceptions and intentions.
By admitting the power of these above modules, once can further plan strategies in marketing and designed to affect these modules.
Therefore, measurement of behavior does not provide guidance for the strategy development in the way that attitude measurement does.
In view marketers can make appropriate modification in attitudes of consumers with respect to its modules.
Do you agree with the post if yes why?