How do you get someone to do something you want them to do? For example, you want employees to do something in a different way or you want to influence people to buy your products or services.

The Attitude Stair-Steps is the concept that “action to bring about a change results from a series of attitudinal changes.” The five steps in this model represent the attitudinal positions of awareness, understanding, concern, dissatisfaction, and action.

Climbing the Attitude Stair-Steps
The Attitude Stair-Steps model uses a diagram of a set of stairs to show that there are different levels of attitude leading to action. When you climb stairs, you must reach one level before moving to a higher level. The same is true of the Attitude Stair-Steps. The five steps on the Attitude Stair-Steps represent the five attitudinal changes that a person goes through in taking action to bring about change.

Step 1 – Awareness. At the base level of the Attitude Stair-Steps is awareness. The individual must first become aware of a situation where action is needed. This could be a problem needing improvement or an area of opportunity.

Step 2 – Understanding. The second step is understanding. In this step, the individual gathers additional information to gain an understanding of what is involved in the problem or opportunity, and how an action might bring about the desired change.

Step 3 – Concern. The third step is concern. After gaining an understanding, the individual will either dismiss the subject, which stops the attitudinal change process, or they become concerned or interested in solving the problem or exploring the opportunity. If the concern or interest is strong enough, it will lead them to the next step.

Step 4 – Dissatisfaction. The fourth step is dissatisfaction. At this step, the individual has developed a desire to change their present situation. There is a gap between what they have and what they want or need. But dissatisfaction doesn’t guarantee action. Often, the individual may remain at this fourth step without ever taking action. The attitudinal change process will move up to the next level-action–only if the dissatisfaction becomes sufficiently strong.

Step 5 – Action. The final step on the Attitude Stair-Steps is action. The action taken will be determined by the individual’s analysis of what it will take to satisfy their needs.

Persuading Others to Take Action
We don’t like to do things that we don’t understand. It is possible to influence individuals and help them to climb the Attitude Stair-Steps. At every step, information is the key to keeping the individual moving toward action.

Managing Employees. Managers can provide information to help employees become aware of problems that require action or improvement opportunities and new ways. Managers can help employees reach the next step by giving them more information that will help them understand the problem or opportunity, and then the process can continue through the rest of the steps: concern, dissatisfaction, and action. You cannot force people to move up the stair-steps and take action, but you can provide the information they need to keep moving up the stairs.

Advertising and Marketing. This model is the key to all advertising and marketing programs. Advertising and marketing activities basically consist of providing information to raise the customer’s awareness and understanding of a want or need and what they can do about it. The idea is to develop a level of concern, then dissatisfaction, and hope that the individual will take the action you want.

This is a general description of the concepts represented by the Attitude Stair-Steps model. In Model-Netics training, these ideas are expanded upon and specific applications to the organizations are introduced and explored.