What is it about?
Hornsey and Fielding (2017) identified a list of "attitude roots" as the real reasons why people believe and act as they do. They described their explanation as transtheoretical because it pulls from explanations based on various theoretical orientations. I noted that listing is not the same as explaining. That attitude roots are said to underlay attitudes and behavior does not in and of itself make them theoretical or transtheoretical. Attitude roots appear to function unconsciously. I called attention to neural network models that explain how unconscious processing works [see Tryon (2014, pp. 139-185)].
Featured Image
Why is it important?
Natural science explanations entail mechanism information that show how events are brought about. Listing possible reasons does not constitute the required causal sequence. Also, putting the names of reasons in boxes and drawing arrows among the boxes constitute natural science explanation.
Perspectives
I commend the authors for identifying alternative reasons for why people believe and behave as they do. Their term "attitude roots" sounds like an explanation but it does not provide the required mechanism information. This short coming is characteristic of many psychological explanations.
Warren Tryon
Fordham University
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Unconscious processing: Comment on Hornsey and Fielding (2017)., American Psychologist, July 2018, American Psychological Association (APA),
DOI: 10.1037/amp0000311.
You can read the full text:
Resources
Contributors
The following have contributed to this page
