this is true of his self-image; a sioux indian might be proud of his ability to withstand pain,but in modern america such an attribute might not win him much social status. the knight who killed many enemies in duels might have been a hero in his day, but modern courst might found him guilty of murder. when we come to consider the aspect of personality which we designate” attitudes and values” it becomes even more obvious that personality is an intricate combination of internal and external processes. personality is always an interaction process.
Beliefs, attitudes ,and values
Miltion rokech (1968)has argued that we should distinguish among beliefs, attitudes ,and values. he proposes that we use the term belief to cover everything the person knows ,or thinks he knows; thus, I believes around the sun, I believe that dynamite is explosive.
Components of belief
Each belief, he says, has a cognitive component, an evaluative component and a behavioral component. Let us consider these in turn.
1. Cognitive on may say, ”I believe that the airplane is a mechanical device for traveling through the air.” Such a belief is purely cognitive or intellectual, but it may be associated with other beliefs of emotional significance; e.g., “I believe that airplanes sometimes fall, and this is hazardous to the health of passengers.”
The self-image is a set of cognitive beliefs. One may say to himself, “I believe that I am ugly “ this could be a purely cognitive matter. Or he may say “l believe that I am clever” Roceach calls these “ “existentential beliefs,” meaning only that the belief relates to an existing reality, with no reference to the value or desirability of such beliefs.
2. Affective Rokeach further says that every belief has an affective(pleasant or unpleasant) ;component. Sometimes this is hard to detect; if I believe that the earth is round, I do not experience any affect with this the thought. He comments that if one consider public opinion at the time of Christopher Columbus, many people may have found belief In a round earth quite unpleasant.
3. Behavioral the presence of a behavioral component of each belief is more debatable. As has often been noted in this book one may not act on his beliefs. For example, a hotel clerk may not like negroes but may still accept them as guests. Rokeach says this only proves that many attitudes may influence an action. The clerk may be acting on his belief that he will be violating the law if he refuses rooms to black guests.
4.