attitude

attitude

In psychology, a mental position with regard to a fact or state. Attitudes reflect a tendency to classify objects and events and to react to them with some consistency. Attitudes are not directly observable but rather are inferred from the objective, evaluative responses a person makes. Thus, investigators depend heavily on behavioral indicators of attitudes—what people say, how they respond to questionnaires, or such physiological signs as changes in heart rate. Attitude research is employed by social psychologists, advertising professionals, and political scientists, among others. Public-opinion researchers often attempt to distinguish attitudes from related concepts such as values, opinions, and knowledge.

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attitude

1. Aeronautics the orientation of an aircraft's axes in relation to some plane, esp the horizontal

2. Ballet a classical position in which the body is upright and one leg raised and bent behind

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attitude [′ad·ə‚tüd]

(aerospace engineering)

The position or orientation of an aircraft, spacecraft, and so on, either in motion or at rest, as determined by the relationship between its axes and some reference line or plane or some fixed system of reference axes.

(geology)

The position of a structural surface feature in relation to the horizontal.

(graphic arts)

The orientation of a camera or a photograph with respect to a given external reference system.