Similarity of Attitudes and Attraction to a Social Organization

65 college students completed an attitude survey and subsequently received an attitude survey covering the same issues which purportedly represented the attitudes held by most of the members of a college fraternity or sorority. Ss then filled out a judgment scale calling for evaluations of the organization's likely feelings of belongingness, cooperative atmosphere, sense of group unity, and pride in the organization. In addition, they indicated how much they would probably like the fraternity or sorority and how much they would enjoy being a member. The hypothesized effect of attitude similarity on attraction was confirmed for both liking and desire to be a member. Perceptions of feelings of belongingness and cooperative atmosphere were also significantly influenced by similarity of attitudes.