How have Social Psychologists theorised the relationship between attitudes & behaviour, and how successful have these been?

The Oxford Dictionary of Psychology defines attitude as 'an enduring pattern of evaluative responses towards a person, object or issue.' The functions of people's attitudes, how they relate to their behaviour, and how to change people's attitudes have always been of interest to Social Psychologists. As a result of this interest, much work has been conducted, and theories have been created about the subject. This essay will examine how Social Psychologists have theorised the …

…Social Psychology (2001). Lyons, E. (1998). Social Psychology 1. In M. Eysenck, Psychology: An Integrated Approach (346). New York: Longman. Rosenberg, M.J. & Hovland, C.I. (1960). Cognitive, affective and behavioural components of attitude. In M.J. Rosenberg, C.I. Hovland, W.J. McGuire, R.P. Abelson & J.W. Brehm (Eds) Attitude Organisation and Change: An Analysis of Consistency Among Attitude Components. New Haven, Ct: Yale University. Cited in Psychology: The Science of Mind and Behaviour (2001).