An attitude is a learned predisposition to respond favorably or unfavorably towards certain people, ideas, objects, or events. It consists of cognitive (beliefs), affective (emotions), and behavioral (actions) components.
Related terms
Cognitive dissonance: This term refers to the discomfort experienced when our attitudes contradict our actions or when our beliefs clash with each other.
Self-perception theory: This theory suggests that people acquire their attitudes by observing their own behavior and inferring what their attitudes must be based on that behavior.
Implicit Association Test (IAT): This test measures unconscious biases by examining how quickly individuals associate positive/negative words with different concepts or groups.