UPSC Mains 2021 GS4 Q4a — Attitude and values
Attitude is an important component that goes as input in the development of human being. How to build a suitable attitude needed for a public servant? (Answer in 150 words)
Question Decoded — examiner's intent
- Directive verbs
- How to
- Scope keywords
- Attitudeimportant componentinput in the development of human beingbuild a suitable attitudepublic servant
- Implicit sub-parts
- Defining attitude as a psychological construct and its role in shaping human behavior/personality.
- Identifying specific components of a 'suitable' attitude for civil services (e.g., empathy, objectivity, neutrality).
- Elucidating the methods and mechanisms—both individual and institutional—to cultivate these attitudes.
- The significance of the CAB model (Cognitive, Affective, Behavioral) in the context of public service.
- Common pitfalls
- Writing a generic essay on 'Attitude is everything' without anchoring it to public service requirements.
- Failing to explain the 'how' part, resulting in a list of traits rather than a process of building them.
- Neglecting the first part of the question regarding attitude as an input for human development.
- Omitting real-world examples or psychological techniques like classical/operant conditioning or social learning.
- Dimensions required
- Psychological (CAB components)Ethical (Values and Integrity)Sociological (Socialization and Environment)Administrative (Training and Feedback mechanisms)Personal (Self-reflection and Emotional Intelligence)
- Marks allocation hint
Spend approximately 30-40 words establishing the link between attitude and human development. Devote the bulk of the answer (90-100 words) to the multi-pronged strategy of building public service attitude through training, role-modeling, and cognitive restructuring. Use the remaining 10-20 words for a concluding statement on the impact of such an attitude on governance.
Unlock the full analysis for this question
You've seen the question and its examiner-intent decoding. Subscribers also get:
- 🔗 Similar Previous Year Questions — cross-year, cross-paper matches so you study the topic, not the question
- 📚 Source Map — verified citations from Laxmikanth, NCERT, PRS, Yojana, Economic Survey, Spectrum
- 🌱 How this topic is evolving — current-affairs bridge anchored to live TARS news clustering
- 🧭 Examiner's Pattern — how the topic has been framed across every year UPSC has tested it
- ✍️ Answer Skeleton — a structured outline (intro → body → conclusion) you can flesh out
- 🎯 AI evaluation — write your answer, get rubric-based scoring from gs-eval
Or browse 132+ free preview questions across all years and papers — the first 3 questions of every paper are unlocked.
Ready to practice?
Subscribers can attempt this question in 150 words and get an instant, rubric-based evaluation showing where they stand.
Subscribe to evaluate your answer →