Behavior influences attitude

Voiceover: So in the last video we talked about how our attitudes influence and shape our behaviors. But is it possible for us to go the other way around? Is it possible for behaviors to actually affect and shape our attitudes? Well, it actually is. So strong social pressures can actually weaken the attitude to behavior connection and cause our attitudes to follow our behavior. Now, this seems a little, seems a little strange cuz usually we're taught how to think and have some sort of perception about something before acting, before behaving. Well, psychologists actually take a look at two phenomenons or have two explanations for the behavior to attitude process. Now the first of these that I'm gonna talk about, is called the foot in the door phenomenon. And I'm gonna draw a picture out for you to see this a little bit clearly and so you can remember it. So the foot-in-the-door phenomenon, let's draw our door right here. There we go and here's ourselves about to walk in the door. So, the foot-in-the-door phenomenon says that we have a tendency to agree to. We have a tendency to agree to small actions first, so very small things. And we eventually over time later comply with much larger actions. So just take some time. It's simple, think about it. To get people to agree to something big, start small, and build from there. So, on a darker note, actually, this is the basic concept behind how people are brainwashed and exploited. They do, or agree to do small things for an authority they greatly dislike, but over time when they consistently do these things, just like everyone around them also does, they think it's okay. They start to get privileges from that authority and eventually over time they start believing that what the authority is saying is in fact good and true. So have you ever seen the movie Blood Diamond? That's the basis behind that movie. That's how those child soldiers were brainwashed into killing, into killing people. They were fed these they were fed these behaviors at a young age and everyone around them also engaged in that type of behavior. So, as they grew up and into adults, they thought that having having weapons and killing people was okay. It fed into their attitude and they themselves would do that to people and spread that attitude and encourage that behavior to those around them. So eventually this door that started off slightly open is pushed completely open all the way over time. Now the second explanation that psychologists look at to explain this odd relationship is role playing. So all of us play many roles in life. I know that I'm sure everyone, all of you, are more than just brothers or sisters or daughters or sons. I know I'm a daughter, I'm a sister, I'm a friend, I'm a student. There's a lot of different roles that I play in life. So picture yourself in a new role. We all wear so many different hats. [BLANK_AUDIO] So here, here I am with my hat. I'm not just wearing one. I'm wearing many different hats, many different roles, many different ways in which I connect with people and have obligations and duties. So, picture yourself in this new role, whatever it may be. Maybe you have a new job, maybe you just got married, maybe you're even a parent for the first time. Well, when you're in that role, doesn't the first few days in that role feel very weird, very phony as if it's not you? Yeah, don't you feel like you're acting? You're not, you're not who you are. Well, that's exactly what we're doing. We're trying to follow some sort of social quota when we're in that role. We're trying to be the best and the perfect at that new role. We're trying to sound professional or play house, like little kids like to do when they're playing with their dolls. We like to act like the best and perfect parents ever. Well that's not possible, it's not possible to ever be perfect right off the bat. But if you give this new role a little longer time, what feels like acting starts to become and feel like you. It feels normal, it feels like it's part of who you are. It actually starts to feel like it fits your attitude. So we can say we've changed our attitude towards that role. And being in that role as a result of our behavior and carrying out the day-to-day duties associated with being a parent, or being part of a new company, or being a student. So what felt like very phony and strange. What felt like very odd behavior eventually shaped and became our who we are, a part of us, an attitude we had towards that behavior. Now there's a disclaimer, this doesn't always happen to all people but these are two important explanations that psychologists have observed and seen. And how behavior affects our attitude. [BLANK_AUDIO]