Final answer:
The correct answer is that Social judgment theory uses latitudes of acceptance and latitudes of rejection to explain attitude change. Attitude change can be internal through cognitive dissonance or external through persuasion, which is explained by the central and peripheral routes as outlined in the Elaboration Likelihood Model of persuasion.
Step-by-step explanation:
Social judgment theory uses latitudes of acceptance and latitudes of rejection to explain attitude change. This theory suggests that when a message falls within our latitude of acceptance, we are more likely to be persuaded by it, whereas messages that fall within our latitude of rejection are typically disregarded or even argued against. Attitude change can be facilitated through different mechanisms:
- Internal attitude change often occurs due to cognitive dissonance when there is a conflict between our attitudes, beliefs, or behaviors.
- External attitude change often involves persuasion through advertising which can take two forms:
- The central route to persuasion, where logic and factual information are used to persuade individuals.
- The peripheral route to persuasion which relies on positive associations and cues like celebrity endorsements.
These routes are part of what is known as the Elaboration Likelihood Model of persuasion, a prominent model that details how persuasion operates on these two levels: the central route involving thorough processing of information, and the peripheral route, where cues outside of the message content itself influence attitude change.