Effects of Attribute Salience on the Consistency between Attitudes and Behavior Predictions

Abstract

This research addresses the possibility that attitude expressions can be unduly influenced by attributes of the attitude object that are momentarily salient, affecting the consistency between attitudinal and/or behavioral expressions regarding the object that are reported in different contexts. Two studies examined the consistency between subjects' attitude expressions made in a specific context and their subsequent predictions of their purchase behaviors toward a product. When the attributes that were salient at attitude expression and at purchase prediction corresponded, the consistency between those judgments was much greater than when the salient attributes did not match. The studies also identified contextual factors and product characterstics that heightened the salience of certain attributes when subjects were making evaluative judgments. Furthermore, the second study demonstrated that the effect of context on attribute salience was moderated by individuals' predispositions to be influenced by situational factors (i.e., their self-monitoring level). Implications for the nature of attitudes are discussed.