Previous studies of youths' attitudes toward the presidency have consistently found that children's favorable views declined with age. Jaros and Kolson have proposed that this affective change results from a cognitive one--that favorability declines as youths learn more about the presidency. The present study examined the cognitive and affective components of attitudes toward the presidency held by a cross-section of 274 Memphis youths, ages 7-18. Analysis of the data revealed that, as hypothesized, adolescents exhibit greater familiarity but less affection for the presidency than children. However, extended multivariate analysis of the data indicated that the cognitive and affective trends are independent, contrary to Jaros and Kolson's hypothesis. (Author)