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What I say Vs. What I do
Julianne LoBianco
Liberty University
General Psychology
PSYC101
4/17/2023
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Introduction
The attitude-behavior gap is a phenomenon that is recognized in social psychology. The
concept refers to various inconsistencies between the beliefs and attitudes of people and their real
behaviors within the real world. Even though most individuals have a positive attitude towards
certain behaviors, there are times when they may fail to act accordingly because of external
pressure or the fact that they cannot control their behaviors. The discrepancy between a person's
thoughts and actions has significant effects on understanding human behaviors. It could also
have significant effects on social interventions within society. This essay explores how the
discrepancy could be understood based on the clinical perspectives and offers insights into the
reasons behind the phenomena and how different individuals may strive for behavioral and belief
alignment.
One of the interesting areas in the study of social psychology is the discrepancies
between what people say and what they do in particular situations versus what they would do
when they were subjected to that particular situation. This situation is referred to as the attitude
and behavior gap. Social psychology studies indicate that the attitude-behavior gap may occur
for different reasons. One of them is that people may not be in total control of their behaviors
(Reich et al., 2022). A good example is the social norms and the external pressures which are
likely to affect the actions of an individual. The other reason is that most people may not
accurately predict how they are likely to behave in particular situations (Hagger, 2019). Such
could be attributed to factors like complexities of the situation, the emotional intensity, or the
influence they have from the existing social contexts.
Attitude-behavior gaps have serious implications on research, especially in the use of
self-reporting measures. This approach is always used in social psychology studies to gather
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information on the participants' attitudes, behaviors, and beliefs. The evidence indicates greater
inconsistencies between behaviors and self-reported attitudes Therefore, (Meissner et al., 2019).
researchers must familiarize themselves with this aspect while interpreting the outcomes. A good
example is when an individual reports a positive attitude towards a certain behavior yet fails to
engage in that behavior because of factors like external pressure. This issue can be addressed
when the researchers develop strategies like the objective measure of behavior to enhance the
validity of the self-reporting measures.
The Bible acknowledges that human beings may not always behave in a manner that
agrees with their intentions and beliefs because they are sinful in nature. For example, the book
of James 4.17 indicates that, therefore, to him who knows to do good and fails to do it has
sinned. This text suggests that even when people know the right thing, they can still fail to do it,
meaning they have sinned.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the attitude and behavior gap is quite complex as it highlights the
inconsistencies which characterize human beliefs, attitudes, and real behavior. In this case, social
psychology studies have demonstrated that individuals' behavior may not predict their accurate
behavior. As a result, researchers may not have clarity on this aspect at the time of result
interpretation. This concept has great implications for researchers, especially in using self-report
measures. From the biblical perspective, the gaps in attitude and behavior can be understood
because humans are sinful, and that causes them to act inconsistently with their intentions and
beliefs. However, the Bible encourages people to align their behaviors with their beliefs. In the
long run, understanding the gaps between attitude and behavior informs the process of
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developing new and effective interventions that will change or influence people's behavior within
society.
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References
Hagger, M. S. (2019). The reasoned action approach and the theories of reasoned action and
planned behavior. . doi: 10.1093/OBO/9780199828340- 0240
Meissner, F., Grigutsch, L. A., Koranyi, N., Müller, F., & Rothermund, K. (2019). Predicting
behavior with implicit measures: Disillusioning findings, reasonable explanations, and
sophisticated solutions. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, 2483.
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02483/full
Reich, B. J., Yuan, H., Zollo, L., & Rialti, R. (2022). CLOSING THE ATTITUDE-BEHAVIOR
GAP: A NOVEL MEASURE TO PREDICT ETHICAL CONSUMPTION. In 2022 AMA
Winter Academic Conference (p. 879). https://www.alexandria.unisg.ch/265966/2/2022-
AMA-Winter-Conference-Proceedings-2.pdf#page=898
