An attitude is made up of three components: cognition, affect, and behavior.7

• The cognitive component of an attitude is made up of the beliefs, opinions, knowledge, and information held by a person. For example, Tenesha feels strongly that smoking is unhealthy.

• The affective component is the emotional or feeling part of an attitude. This component would be reflected in the statement by Tenesha, “I don’t like Carlo because he smokes.” Cognition and affect can lead to behavioral outcomes.

• The behavioral component of an attitude refers to an intention to behave in a certain way toward someone or something. So, to continue our example, Tenesha might choose to avoid Carlo because of her feelings about his smoking habit.

Looking at attitudes as being made up of three components—cognition, affect, and behavior—helps to illustrate their complexity and helps us better understand what “precedes” someone’s response, reaction, or behavior. But keep in mind that when people use the term “attitude”—as in, “that person has a bad attitude” or “I’m glad your attitude towards this is positive”—they’re usually referring only to the actual affective (emotional) component. Remember that managers are trying to explain, predict, and influence people’s behavior, and knowing that there’s more to “attitude” than just the emotional part helps us better know how to do just that.