Mutli-Attribute Attitude Models

Multi-attribute attitude models portray consumers’ attitudes with regard to an attitude object as a function of consumers’ perception and assessment of the key attributes or beliefs held with regard to the particular attitude object. There are many variations of the attitude model, three to consider are: attitude-toward-object model, attitude-toward-behavior model, and the theory-of-reasoned-action model.

Attitude-towards-object Model

This model is especially suited for measuring attitudes toward a product category or specific brands. According to this model, the consumer’s attitude toward a product or specific brands of a product is a function of the presence (or absence) and evaluation of certain product-specific beliefs and/or attributes. Consumers generally have a favorable attitude toward those brands they believe have an adequate level of attributes that they evaluate as positive, and they have unfavorable attitudes toward those brands they feel do not have an adequate level of desired attributes or have too many negative or undesired attributes. 

This can be explained in the car purchase example, where an individual is evaluating features of petrol and diesel cars.. The features can be evaluated into two categories as favourable and unfavourable.

The Attitude-Toward-Behavior Model

This model is designed to capture the individual’s attitude toward behaving or acting with respect to an object, rather than the attitude toward the object itself.

The appeal of this model is that it seems to correspond somewhat more closely to actual behavior than does the attitude-toward-object model. 

We have already discussed the relationship between attitude and behaviour. Having a positive or favourable attitude does not always result in buying behaviour. For example, an individual has a positive attitude towards BMW, but may not purchase a BMW because of financial constraints.

Attitude-towards-Behaviour Model aims at judging the relative importance of the features as per the benefits it offers as consumers majorly decide on the basis of functional benefits. 

Theory-of-Reasoned-Action Model

This model represents a comprehensive integration of attitude components into a structure that is designed to help knowing what and why of behaviour. It gives better explanation and predictions of behavior. The theory-of-reasoned-action aims at analyzing intentions vis-a-vis motivations for a purchase behaviour.

Like the basic tri-component model, theory of reasoned action also based on learn, feel and do components, however, they are arranged in a different pattern as:

The individual's attitude is measured as a sum of objective norm and subjective norm. Objective norms is measured as individual's belief for certain outcomes after a purchase and the importance of those outcomes.

Mathematically,

In accordance with this extended model, to understand intention we also need to measure the subjective norms that influence an individual’s intention to act. This can be assessed measuring a consumer’s feelings as to what means to the others (family, relatives, friends, co-workers). Here, the learning will basically measure emotional functions that may be accomplished through purchase. 

The individual’s motivation to comply with this normative belief is measured on the degree to which he is attributing his purchase to the others (family, relatives, friends, co-workers). This attribution different from person to person. The individual may feel more for the objects that has more value to the person most important for him for a particular purchase. 

Reference; Consumer Behaviour by Schiffman, Kaunk and Kumar and Consumer Behaviour by Solom

Mathematical approach to Multi-attribute attitude model with an illustration.

Extended Multi-attribute Attitude Model