Effects of Experience on Attitude Structure (Abstract)

Citation:

Robert E. Burnkrant, H. Rao Unnava, and Thomas J. Page, Jr. (1991) ,"Effects of Experience on Attitude Structure (Abstract)", in NA - Advances in Consumer Research Volume 18, eds. Rebecca H. Holman and Michael R. Solomon, Provo, UT : Association for Consumer Research, Pages: 28-29.

Advances in Consumer Research Volume 18, 1991      Pages 28-29

EFFECTS OF EXPERIENCE ON ATTITUDE STRUCTURE

(ABSTRACT - )

Robert E. Burnkrant, Ohio State University

H. Rao Unnava, Ohio State University

Thomas J. Page, Jr., Michigan State University

[The authors would like to acknowledge the assistance of Philip Lewis in the early phases of data analysis and the Hearing Industries Association for making these data available.]

Traditional treatments of attitude hold that a single composite of belie& and evaluations (hereafter called expectancy-value attitude) predicts attitude toward behavior which in turn predicts behavioral intention (e.g., Fishbein and Ajzen 1975). The creation of a single expectancy-value attitude by summing (or averaging) all belief-evaluation products assumes that these products form a unidimensional structure. However, several studies have shown that expectancy-value attitude is more adequately represented as a multidimensional rather than unidimensional structure (e.g., Bagozzi 1981, Burnkrant and Page 1988, Shimp and Kavas 1984, -Oliver and Bearden 1985). Burnkrant and Page (1988) found in their study of blood donation behavior that expectancy-value attitude may be represented as a two dimensional structure with one dimension representing positive belief-evaluation products and a second dimension representing negative belief-evaluation products. These two expectancy-value dimensions were then employed as predictors of attitude toward behavior which in turn predicted BI. We expected that a similar structure would emerge in this research which examined determinants of the intention to use hearing aids.

A second objective of this research was to determine effects of experience on the structure of expectancy-value attitude and on relationships among expectancy-value attitude, attitude toward behavior and behavioral intention. This was accomplished in this research by examining hearing impaired hearing aid owners and nonowners separately and by comparing models across owners and nonowners.

There has been relatively little examination in prior research of moderators of attitude structure. However, Oliver and Bearden (1985) used a set of psychographic variables to examine moderators of structural relationships. They found differences in the predictive power of attitude dimensions between subjects who were high in familiarity with an issue and those who were low in familiarity. Bagozzi (1981) examined attitude structure separately for nondonors, past donors and current donors of blood and found support for a three dimensional structure for current and past donors. No well defined attitude structure was found for nondonors. These findings suggest that experience with an issue should be a moderator of the structure and relationships involving expectancy-value attitude.

Other relationships examined in this research include the effect of experience on whether attitude toward behavior fully mediates the relationship between expectancy-value attitude and behavioral intention and the strength of the relationship between attitude toward behavior and intention. First, it was expected that, for people who have experience with the issue, attitude toward behavior will fully mediate the relationship between expectancy-value attitude and behavioral intention; but, for subjects who do not have experience, attitude toward behavior will not fully mediate this relationship. Second, it was expected that attitude toward behavior will be a-stronger predictor of intention for those who have experience than for those who do not have experience.

Hearing impaired owners and nonowners of hearing aids filled out a questionnaire in which they responded to beliefs about the consequences of using hearing aids and provided evaluations of those consequences. Exploratory research found fourteen salient consequences and they were employed in this research. They also responded to semantic differential scales designed to measure attitude toward using hearing aids, and they provided ratings of their intention to use hearing aids within the next six months. Question wording and response scales corresponded to the procedures recommended by Ajzen and Fishbein (1980).

Results provided support for a two dimensional model of expectancy-value attitude with one dimension representing positive belief-evaluation products and a second dimension representing negative belief-evaluation products. This model held for both owners and nonowners of hearing aids. Evidence was also obtained in support of the expectation that attitude toward the behavior would fully mediate the relationship between expectancy-value attitude and behavioral intention for the experienced group but not for those lacking experience. Finally, it was found that attitude toward behavior was a stronger predictor of intention for those who had experience than it was for those who did not have experience.

REFERENCES

Ajzen, Icek and Martin Fishbein (1980), Understanding Attitudes and Predicting Social Behavior, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall.

Bagozzi, Richard P. (1981), "An Examination of the Validity of Two Models of Attitude," Multivariate Behavioral Research, 16 (July), 323-359.

Burnkrant, Robert E. and Thomas J. Page, Jr. (1988), 'The Structure and Antecedents of the Normative and Attitudinal Components of Fishbein's Theory of Reasoned Action." Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 24 (January), 66-87.

Fishbein, Martin and Icek Ajzen (1975), Belief, Attitude, Intention and Behavior: An Introduction to Theory and Research, Reading, Mass.: Addison-Wesley.

Oliver, Richard L. and William O. Bearden (1985), "Crossover Effects in the Theory of Reasoned Action: A Moderating Influence Attempt." Journal of Consumer Research, 12 (December), 324-340.

Shimp, Terence A. and Alican Kavas (1984), 'The Theory of Reasoned Action Applied to Coupon Usage," Journal of Consumer Research, 11 (December), 795-809.

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