Cognitive Dissonance in Theory and Everyday Life

When faced with conflict, you may experience cognitive dissonance if you make a decision to lessen potential conflict between you and other people, but it’s not necessarily a decision you fully believe in. When faced with a deadline, you could even cut corners to https://ecosoberhouse.com/ accomplish a task, but then experience discomfort when it’s done because you value hard work. You may also experience cognitive dissonance when you have situations where friends, family members or coworkers act a certain way that don’t align with your beliefs.

A Theory of Cognitive Dissonance – Leon Festinger

Famous people are quoted, often without their permission and out of context, but in a way that supports the credibility of the group. The Moonies were able to boast that former British Prime Minister Ted Heath had attended their conferences, although it seems that he treated these as paid holidays. Differentiating ethical from unethical use of information is essential. An ethical group will tell a newcomer upfront who they are, what they believe and what is expected of a member. If you join a religion, you know in advance a variety of cultural restrictions — not eating pork or beef, or vegetarianism, for instance.

What Influences Cognitive Dissonance?

Hypnotic and suggestive techniques to induce “altered state of consciousness” are often used to transform or “reprogram” people’s thoughts and memories. Some groups use hours of tedious lectures several times a week, demanding that members memorize and regurgitate the correct answers in tests. Other groups use audible prayers, chanting, speaking in tongues, davening (rocking backward and forward) or meditation to induce altered states in which people are less capable of analytical thinking or evaluation. Critical skills can be over-ridden through repetition, fixation or constant mimicry, or through techniques that induce euphoria.

Culture and Cognitive Dissonance

• Cognitive dissonance theory was first presented by Leon Festinger in 1957 in order to explain the relationships between the motivation, perceptions and cognitions of an individual (Festinger, 1962).
• Furthermore, these authors also discuss how they have “used the change-resistance account as a framework for designing a more comprehensive intervention” (i.e., as a tool).
• Mismatches between your beliefs and actions can lead to feelings of discomfort (and, sometimes, coping choices that have negative impacts), but such feelings can also sometimes lead to change and growth.
• In summary, Cognitive Dissonance theory has contributed to the concept of consistency in several ways.

Justifying that way might seem like a way of being dishonest with yourself, but it’s perfectly natural, says Michele Leno, PhD, a psychologist and the founder of DML Psychological Services in Farmington Hills, Michigan. And it cognitive dissonance theory can be a good thing if you recognize the dissonance, take the time to really think through your options, and make better decisions. That will result in less dissonance, and there will be less of a need to rationalize later.

Brewer’s dual-process model posits automatic identification processes and controlled categorization, individuation, and personalization. The reasons for this enhancement include increased motivation on the part of the client and a more positive view about the likelihood of therapeutic success. Feelings of personal choice and responsibility are at the core of these reasons, and they represent essential conditions for dissonance to occur; people must feel that they had choice and were responsible for the action that led to the dissonance.

• According to Festinger, there are a few ways that a person might resolve this dissonance.
• It occurs in all of us frequently, not just when planning to diet and justifying a doughnut with a delayed diet start.
• In groups, the familiar prior knowledge about own group and other groups is captured by social identity theory and self-categorization theory (Sect. 2.3).

Cognitive Dissonance: Theory, Examples & How to Reduce It

The Role of Theories in Cognitive Psychology

Provide choice

• The theory of cognitive dissonance has been widely researched in a number of situations to develop the basic idea in more detail, and various factors have been identified which may be important in attitude change.
• In his study and his book [3,4], Festinger infiltrated students into a UFO cult.
• Because the mental or emotional distress it can cause can definitely affect your health and well-being.
• However, the theory proposed that higher levels of dissonance can forcefully motivate a person to promptly address the psychological discomforts, while small levels of dissonance may not be as effective in encouraging the person to take an immediate action.