Week 6

Question 1
In talking about attitudes, the authors argue that, “The formation, maintenance, and evolution of attitudes are ongoing and life-long processes. Crime, for example, may not be viewed as a major problem until one becomes a victim. Direct experience, is one component in attitude formation. Attitudes on the emotional issue of abortion often result from our interactions at home and among friends. We form many attitudes based on vicarious or symbolic experience” (Woodward & Denton, 138). Do you think that some of the major global issues remain unsolved because we can’t get close enough to the issue, because our direct experiences are so far away? Further, could you think of a way to make issues like global warming, the war in Iraq, world hunger etc… more accessible to those of us to who have the ability to affect change? What would a successful PR campaign look like on the aforementioned topics (pick just one)?

Question 2
When discussing the Stimulus-Response Theory, the authors note that, “Focusing on the nature of the stimulus highlights factors of human motivation and conditioning. For example, what makes us recognize and value a Picasso painting more than one by Smith? Focusing on the nature of the response evaluates factors of choice and reasonableness” (Woodward & Denton, 144).
I know for myself, I tend to value more obscure, “off-the-beaten-track” types of things, especially with regards to art. This reminds me of the saying “beauty is in the eye of the beholder.” Do you think this is true, or do you think we are motivated to like certain things because others like them? For instance, a recent trip to Europe left me at the base of Leonardo da Vinci’s most famous painting, the Mona Lisa. To me, the Mona Lisa is just an over publicized piece of art, like Vincent Van Gogh’s Starry Night. However, the Mona Lisa has, unlike Starry Night, become so famous, it must live behind several layers of Plexiglas, requires 24/7 security, and has the most visitors of anything in the Louvre. Starry Night on the other hand lives on a wall with several other works by Van Gogh in the Musee D’Orsay, which could easily be touched or damaged by any walker-by.
My question that remains: how did the Mona Lisa become so famous? Do the majority of people recognize the Mona Lisa as a true artistic masterpiece or does it just have a really good publicist?

Question 3
In discussing the Theory of Reasoned Action, I began to wonder whether or not there is a certain age at which people begin, as the authors’ state, “To calculate the costs and benefits associated with social behavior” (Woodward & Denton, 157) more or less. When I was in High School, I volunteered at the Pierce County Juvenile Court as a Diversion Board member, and more often than not, the teens I met with justified their behavior by saying things like, “I never thought it would end up this way” or, “In the moment, I wasn’t thinking about the future. I felt invincible.” I think to some extent we are all guilty of this, but perhaps as we get older we are able to put on stronger filters so we can better judge the outcomes of our actions. What do you think?