Direction Of Attitude Change Research Articles

Effectiveness of inquiry‐based science laboratories for improving teamwork and problem‐solving skills and attitudes

AbstractBased on quantitative survey data collected from an inquiry‐based general chemistry laboratory course, the current study used marginal models to evaluate changes in students' teamwork and problem‐solving skills, attitudes to teamwork, and willingness to explore new issues before and after the course. The results suggest that introductory‐level inquiry‐based laboratory courses may not influence all students in the same way. By the end of the course, novice learners with a lower team‐based problem‐solving starting point reported greater learning growth than more experienced learners. As a result, the gap between novice learners' teamwork and problem‐solving skills and attitudes and those of more experienced learners narrowed. However, the results also suggest that, by the end of the course, more experienced learners had developed negative attitudes to teamwork and problem‐solving. In addition, deeper learning was found to be associated with improvements in team‐based problem‐solving for both novice and more experienced learners. Deep learning levels were related to both the magnitude and direction of attitude change, particularly for more experienced learners. These findings suggest that offering introductory‐level inquiry‐based laboratory courses is beneficial to narrow achievement gaps. In order to empower students of all experience levels, a differentiated instruction method should be adopted to accommodate students' varied needs.

Impact and change of attitudes toward Internet interventions within a randomized controlled trial on individuals with depression symptoms.

Most individuals with depression do not receive adequate treatment. Internet interventions may help to bridge this gap. Research on attitudes toward Internet interventions might facilitate the dissemination of such interventions by identifying factors that help or hinder uptake and implementation, and by clarifying who is likely to benefit. This study examined whether attitudes toward Internet interventions moderate the effects of a depression-focused Internet intervention, and how attitudes change over the course of treatment among those who do or do not benefit. We recruited 1,004 adults with mild-to-moderate depression symptoms and investigated how attitudes toward Internet interventions are associated with the efficacy of the program deprexis, and how attitudes in the intervention group change from pre to post over a 3 months intervention period, compared to a control group (care as usual). This study consists of a subgroup analysis of the randomized controlled EVIDENT trial. Positive initial attitudes toward Internet interventions were associated with greater efficacy (η2p =.014) independent of usage time, whereas a negative attitude (perceived lack of personal contact) was associated with reduced efficacy (η2p =.012). Users' attitudes changed during the trial, and both the magnitude and direction of attitude change were associated with the efficacy of the program over time (η2p =.030). Internet interventions may be the most beneficial for individuals with positive attitudes toward them. Informing potential users about evidence-based Internet interventions might instill positive attitudes and thereby optimize the benefits such interventions can provide. Assessing attitudes prior to treatment might help identify suitable users.

The Effects of Virtual Experience on Attitudes Toward Real Brands

Although the commercial availability and implementation of virtual reality interfaces has seen rapid growth in recent years, little research has been conducted on the potential for virtual reality to affect consumer behavior. One unaddressed issue is how our real world attitudes are affected when we have a virtual experience with the target of those attitudes. This study compared participant (N=60) attitudes toward car brands before and after a virtual test drive of those cars was provided. Results indicated that attitudes toward test brands changed after experience with virtual representations of those brands. Furthermore, manipulation of the quality of this experience (in this case modification of driving difficulty) was reflected in the direction of attitude change. We discuss these results in the context of the associative-propositional evaluation model.

Effect of Group Means on the Probability of Consensus

In this study, groups who could not reach a consensus were investigated using the group polarization paradigm. The purpose was to explore the conditions leading to intragroup disagreement and attitude change following disagreement among 269 participants. Analysis indicated that the probability of consensus was low when the group means differed from the grand mean of the entire sample. When small differences among group members were found, depolarization (reverse direction of polarization) followed disagreement. These results suggested the groups which deviated most from the population tendency were the most likely to cause within-group disagreement, while within-group variances determined the direction of attitude change following disagreement within the group.

Students' Attitudes Toward Computer Technology in the Recreation and Leisure Studies Classroom

The purpose of this study was to determine students' attitude toward computer technology in recreation and leisure studies courses. Using the Computer Attitude Scale (Loyd & Gressard, 1984a), graduate students' (N=24) computer anxiety, computer confidence, and computer liking was measured during two computer-assisted courses. Post-test scores revealed a significant unfavorable overall change in attitude toward computers (p=.054). Pre- to post-test analysis for the confidence subscale produced a significant change (p=.019) indicating less computer confidence. Although not significant, pre- to post-test scores for the anxiety and liking subscales demonstrated increased computer anxiety and decreased liking. Explanations for the negative direction of attitude change include outside pressures, workload, increased individual responsibility, technology problems, and interference with the teacher-student and student-student relationship. Results underscore the value of considering students' attitudes toward computer use when designing and implementing computer-assisted instruction.

Outcomes of crew resource management training.

Participants' self-reports and measures of attitudes regarding flightdeck management indicate that crew resource management training is favorably received and causes highly significant, positive changes in attitudes regarding crew coordination and personal capabilities. However, a subset of participants reacted negatively to the training and showed boomerangs (negative change) in attitudes. Explorations into the causes of this effect pinpoint personality factors and group dynamics as critical determinants of reactions to training and of the magnitude and direction of attitude change. Implications of these findings for organizations desiring to enhance crew effectiveness are discussed, and areas of needed additional research are described.

Attitude Change, Dogmatism, and Ascription of Responsibility: The Case of the State Commission of Inquiry on the Massacres at Sabra and Shatila

This article examines the impact that publication of the Report of the State Commission of Inquiry on the massacres at Sabra and Shatila had on the beliefs of people holding conflicting political views. Differences among individuals regarding evaluation of responsibility falling on Israeli leaders for the massacres, before and after the findings were published, were found to be related to dogmatism as measured by the D Scale. While political beliefs and commitments were the most important factors shaping the views of individuals about the massacres, dogmatism proved to be of significant importance in the determination of the level and direction of attitude change generated by the availability of new authoritative information.

Attitude Change Among Teachers in U.S. Department of Energy Educational Workshops

Summary This study assessed whether the attitudes of teachers toward energy issues were significantly changed by participating in U.S. government-sponsored educational workshops. Pre- and postquestionnaires (32 items) were administered to 47 participants at two of these workshops. An ANOVA for repeated measures was performed to ascertain significant changes. Direction of attitude change was also analyzed. Results indicated that the effect of workshop participation on energy attitudes was quite small. Changes were more evident in policy items than in items dealing with energy sources. For a minority of Ss, the workshop experience appeared to intensify existing attitudes about energy sources and to change policy attitudes from one extreme to the other.

Selection Versus Role Occupancy as Determinants of Role-Related Attitudes Among Psychiatric Aides

This paper deals with three inter-related concerns: (a) how role related attitudes emerge; (b) why they emerge in organizational contexts; and (c) what consequences they have for organizationalfunctioning. In a longitudinal analysis contrasting psychological and sociological perspectives, both selection and role occupancy were found to contribute to role related attitudes. (1) Selective turnover resulted in custodially oriented aides remaining in the organization. (2) Official socialization, however, shaped attitudes in an opposite direction, inducing more treatment orientations. (3) Regular participation in the organization had an overall effect of increasing custodialism among aides. Organizational goals were believed to influence selection as well as direction of attitude change. It was furthermore hypothesized that congruence between members' attitudes and organizational goals increased organizational effectiveness.

Instruction in psychiatric nursing, level of anxiety, and direction of attitude change toward the mentally ill

Instruction in psychiatric nursing, level of anxiety, and direction of attitude change toward the mentally ill

Controlling classical conditioning with sentence structure.

64 Ss were randomly assigned to one of two learning strategies for associating visually presented male names with orally presented evaluative words. The contiguity treatment produced attitude changes in the direction of the associated evaluative words. The negative statement treatment stopped the conditioning effect and in two cases significantly reversed the direction of attitude change. It was concluded that sentence structure can dramatically alter the role that contiguity plays in verbal attitudinal learning.