Attitudinal Change and Behavioral Change

I have been out of the university for several years now - 12 to be exact. But I still remember most of the social psychology that I read and studied hard for. One of the facets of social psychology that intrigued me the most was the concept of attitudes - how they are formed, how they are changed, and how they are expressed in terms of real, measurable behaviors. One of the core things that we learned back then was that in spite of the advances that the field has had, the concept of 'attitudes' remained to be a truly controversial one. Measuring them poses difficulties. Relating them with behaviors is even far more difficult.

I remember my university thesis - wherein we studied juvenile delinquents. We had to come up with attitudinal measures that would help predict delinquency and non-delinquency using Kohlberg's moral development theory as a basis for these attitudes. Those were the days when I would pore through literature - Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Psychometrika, and the rest - on Saturdays and Sundays and on public holidays just to complete the literature and the framework.

I miss the rigors of the academia.

Something that we have lost in the world of business. Businesses - particularly those that are family-run or used to be family-run - are simply too "practical" that they think that the academia has no role in the world of business. I think there is a role for academics in the world of business. And in fact, in these uncertain times, all the more we need the rigors of academic thinking. Of course, there are those who are on the other end of the spectrum: Those who are 'professors' inside the office.

But the problem is the complete, and utter disregard for the academia in the business.

I got into a debate lately about attitudinal change and the structure of attitudes. Got me into trouble, I think. But I honestly thought that seriously, the framework's fundamentals - our understanding's framework - is essentially incomplete. That we needed more. That we have to do more. That we cannot rest with what we have.

Unfortunately, I am just a small voice. And I guess, whilst I consider myself well-read, I don't have the "three letters" after my name to make myself truly heard and respected.

Then again, I really don't care.

There are far better things to think about than politics and fights in the office.