That mental stress arises when the conflicts among cognitions threatens the persons positive selfimage. A current perspective aronson, berkowitz, 1969, elliot aronson linked cognitive dissonance to the selfconcept. A moment of cognitive dissonance is either intentionally created or stumbled upon. Cognitive dissonance theory predicts that when realworld events disconfirm deeplyheld beliefs this creates psychological discomfort in persons and they will respond by means of distortion and denial. Cognitive dissonance social emotive neuroscience lab. May 06, 2017 still as of may, 2009 one of my few favorite psychology treatises of all time, a theory of cognitive dissonance best exemplified the pivotal concept of, and was a key bibliographic source for, my 1972 georgetown univ. I then examine the evolution of dissonance as it emerged. When there is an inconsistency between attitudes or behaviors dissonance, something must change to eliminate the. Investors purchase stocks long or short because they hold a certain set of beliefs about that stock, even short term investors. Jan 22, 2019 cognitive dissonance is defined as a state of mind where our belief does not match with our behaviour. As a formal statement, festingers theory of cognitive dissonance lieves that.
According to cognitive dissonance theory festinger, 1957, one should be motivated to reduce that conflict, generally by altering ones beliefs. It is not easy to hit upon teachable moments that emerge from cognitive dissonance, as it is a delicate series of events that have to happen in someones mind. The main concepts of this theory are extremely simple. Since then, investigators concerned with dissonance theory have utilized it in studying a broad range of phenomena, such as attitude change, decisional processes, social interaction and mass behavior, among other things. Psychologically speaking, cognitive dissonance is the mental discomfort stress that a person undergoes when heshe goes through simultaneous contradiction of ideas, values, or beliefs when doing something that runs counter to one or more of the ideas, values, or beliefs, or when heshe comes across new information that opposes one of the ideas, values, or.
The origins of cognitive dissonance yale university. Nov, 2012 a moment of cognitive dissonance is either intentionally created or stumbled upon. Acognitive dissonance approach avidit acharya matthew blackwell maya sen may 28,2015 word count. Second, dissonance theory has generated literally hundreds of studies. These methods help the person experiencing cognitive dissonance to reduce the discomfort and anxiety caused by conflicting beliefs. Creating dissonance can induce behavior or attitude change. The third shows how cognitive dissonance can explain the. Festingers 1957 cognitive dissonance theory suggests that we have an inner drive to hold all our attitudes and behavior in harmony and avoid disharmony or dissonance. What are the consequences of prolonged cognitive dissonance. Cognitive dissonance and the impact it has on investing. Leon festingers theory of cognitive dissonance has not been adequately researched in its application to morality i. Cognitive dissonance often arises in response to events outside an individuals control that violate her worldview or expectations for examples, see harmonjones, amodio, and harmonjones 2009. Cognitive dissonance examples cognitive dissonance is essentially the occurrence or possession of conflicting beliefs and the desire to eliminate one belief for another. Home cognitive dissonance experiment cognitive dissonance experiment 79.
Cognitive dissonance theory is a very wideranging theory. Read on to find out more about the theory of cognitive dissonance, discover examples from real. Festingers theory of cognitive dissonance has been one. This article was originally published in the encyclopedia. A theory of cognitive dissonance by leon festinger, 1962, stanford university press edition. This chapter focuses on theory of cognitive dissonance. Psychologically speaking, cognitive dissonance is the mental discomfort stress that a person undergoes when heshe goes through simultaneous contradiction of ideas, values, or beliefs when doing something that runs counter to one or more of the ideas, values, or beliefs, or when heshe comes across new information that opposes. Alexander, jr explorations in cognitive dissonance. One of the most popular cognitive approaches to the study of motivation has been the theory of cognitive dissonance, first systematically this article was most recently revised and updated by brian duignan, senior editor. Most of them can generally be arranged into four groups. This study intended to know how marketers used theory of. Using cognitive dissonance to encourage water conservation1. Sep 28, 2016 before leon fessinger created experiments in 1957 he and his colleagues henry riecken and stanley schachter were interested in conditions under which disconfirmation of beliefs leads to increased conviction.
Cognitive dissonance has 3 conditions that cause more post decision dissonancethe more important the issuethe longer the agonythe least reversible. This article was originally published in the encyclopedia of. Benoits discussion of persuasion and the characteristics of the cognitive dissonance theory, he stresses different aspects of festingers results that make it worthy of further study but also questions the validity of the experiment altogether. Festinger 1957 introduced the concept of cognitive dissonance after conducting an observational study of a cult dubbed as seekers by festinger and. A marketing and management perspective article pdf available in procedia social and behavioral sciences. In this paradigm, dissonance is created in standard ways but some subjects are led. The list of companies that have ousted ceos in 2008 just keeps growing. Finally, the authors present results from experiments examining predictions derived from the actionbased model and neural processes involved in dissonance reduction. Next, we emphasize the actual lack of standardization, both in the ways to induce cognitive dissonance and to assess it, which impairs the comparability of the results.
The theory of cognitive dissonance festinger, 1957. This reinterpretation of the original festinger and carlsmith study, using the induced. This work is a clearly stated theory on how humans think, decide, and defend their decisions. Cognitive dissonance challenges a possibility of human evolution. The unease or tension that the conflict arouses in people is relieved by one of several defensive maneuvers. This paper discusses the aspects of the cognitive dissonance theory. The motivating influence of cognitive dissonance has been shown to promote changes in attitudes as well as behavior aronson, 1969, 1980. Cognitive dissonance theory, developed by leon festinger 1957, is concerned with the relationships among cognitions. According to this view, dissonance only occurs when one behaves contrary to hisher selfview. A theory of cognitive dissonance by festinger, leon, 19191989. Cognitive dissonance has negatively direct effect on word of mouth communication. Cognitive dissonance was first introduced through social psychology, but still plays a fundamental role in public relations. In cognitive dissonance theory, there are several underlying themes, most notably that of religion in cognitive dissonance. Festingers 1957 theory of cognitive dissonance is arguably one of the most influential theories in the history.
In the field of psychology, cognitive dissonance occurs when a person holds two or more contradictory beliefs, ideas, or values, or participates in an action that goes against one of these three, and experiences psychological stress because of that. The cognitive dissonance theory and its function in public. Cognitive dissonance has negatively direct effect on anticipated satisfaction. Spreading of alternatives according to research derived from cognitive dissonance theory, after individuals make. Major cognitive dissonance phenomena let us now turn to a brief discussion of major cognitive dissonance phenomena. The point is not to create confusion, rather the effect is more of wonderment. Explorations in cognitive dissonance, wiley, new york 1962. The origins of cognitive dissonance evidence from childre n and monkeys louisa c. What is cognitive dissonance, know its theory and examples. Cognitive dissonance and beliefs according to cognitive dissonance theory, when two or more cognitive elements such as behaviors and attitudes. Recent revisions of cognitive dissonance theory no longer encompass some of. Apr 21, 2011 cognitive dissonance is perhaps one of the most significant psychological theories with a direct transmission mechanism into investing. People hold many different cognitions about their world, e. Insofar as the theory goes, religion is one helpful mechanism for avoiding cognitive dissonance, as religion often provides an explanation for the nature and generation of the world, as well as a set of guidelines to follow.
Cognitive dissonance is a basic tool for education in general. Cognitive dissonance cd is a discomfort caused by holding conflicting elements of knowledge. Cognitivedissonancetheory after50yearsofdevelopment. Potential model actual model partial model cognitive dissonance uniqueness constraint. The present experiment sought to demonstrate the presence of cognitive dissonance after making a difficult decision concerning morality. When bad news occurs, damaging fundamentals, the idea of buying into weakness or lowering your average purchase price reinforces. Pdf cognitive dissonance identification in the institutional setting. Cd is among the most influential and extensively studied theories in social psychology e. Cognitive dissonance is defined as a state of mind where our belief does not match with our behaviour. Cognitive dissonance, the global financial crisis and. Sometimes people can directly address the cognitive dissonance arising from these unwelcome events. The social comparison theory was originally proposed by leon festinger in 1954. Cognitive dissonance post purchase has been a marketers. In terms of psychology, its a mental discomfort associated with psychological stress experienced by a person, where the person holds on to more than one contradictory ideas, attitudes, or beliefs.
Cognitive dissonance is one form of social comparison. Let us now turn to a brief discussion of major cognitive dissonance phenomena. Cognitive dissonance an overview sciencedirect topics. Cognitive dissonance can be defined as the conflict that arises when there is an inconsistency between ones beliefs and ones behavior, or between two cognitions. Cognitive dissonance almost explains why investors typically nurse significant losses on stocks and dont always sell them even when they have ample opportunities to exit positions incurring only marginal losses. Cognitive dissonance is the discomfort you feel when you do something thats against your beliefs. Leon festingers theory of cognitive dissonance has been widely recognized for its important and influential concepts in areas of motivation and social psychology. Cognitive dissonance theory another form of consistency theory is cognitive dissonance theory, developed by leon festinger 1957. Known to others as a study on induced compliance benoit 1, festingers. This paper examines the origins of the theory and the controversies it engendered. I consider the socialpsychological concept cognitive dissonance as the best explanatory framework for understanding this response. Before leon fessinger created experiments in 1957 he and his colleagues henry riecken and stanley schachter were interested in conditions under which disconfirmation of beliefs leads to increased conviction.
Cognitive dissonance, the mental conflict that occurs when beliefs or assumptions are contradicted by new information. Pros and cons of the cognitive dissonance theory l. Hence if i think of my self as being an altruistic being this being my selfcognition i will. In general, social psychologists, always looking for the next great theory, seemed to have shelved this book and its concepts within a couple of decades after it came out in 1957 see leon festingers comments 30 years later in appendix b of cognitive dissonance progress on a. Festinger argues that there are three possible relationships among cognitions thoughts, ideas. Of all published articles, the following were the most read within the past 12 months.
However, some of the ways we reduce cognitive dissonance are more healthy than others. Cognitive dissonance theory is applicable in all situations which involves formation and. The second demonstrates how individuals with differing political preferencesbut who feel empathy or kinship toward one another. This inconsistency generates forces toward a balance which is achieved variously through altering. According to cognitive dissonance theory, there is a tendency for individuals to seek consistency among their cognitions i. How did leon festinger discovered cognitive dissonance. Theory of cognitive dissonance as it pertains to morality. Festingers theory of cognitive dissonance springerlink. Although it is not always supported for example, curiosity might interfere with the selective exposure effect, there is no question that this theory has strong research support. Another argument that may support the use of the environmental frame for animal advocacy is related with behavioral and attitudinal change. Cognitive dissonance 2 is a perceptilea vector of powerinconsistent unbalanced with the patterns of concepts and percepts already present in the dynamic psychological field and the percipients perspective. This is known as the principle of cognitive consistency.
Artificially inducing cognitive dissonance with self statements that so obviously conflict with a persons sense of reality can really hurt them. A study on effect of cognitive dissonance on consumption. A marketing and management perspective article pdf available in procedia social and behavioral sciences 24. Cognitive dissonance exists in large proportions because if we were always aware of how unjust society is, we would be sad and angry all of the time. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. People dislike disharmony and strive to avoid the conflict as much as possible at all times. According to the social psychologist, the social comparison theory is the idea that there is a drive within individuals to search for outside images in order to evaluate their own opinions and abilities. Cognitive dissonance can affect many of the decisions and actions we take in the world. Cognitive dissonance theory and research dominated social.
Exploring cognitive dissonance between college students. According to this theory, when two actions or ideas are not psychologically consistent with each other, people do all in their power. In spite of peoples desire to avoid it, the proper use of cognitive dissonance can be a useful tool in overcoming conflict. Cognitive dissonance theory festinger flashcards quizlet. Still as of may, 2009 one of my few favorite psychology treatises of all time, a theory of cognitive dissonance best exemplified the pivotal concept of, and was a key bibliographic source for, my 1972 georgetown univ. Cognitive dissonance explains why people change their attitudes or behaviors when they are introduced to new and contradicting information. Jul 23, 2008 the list of companies that have ousted ceos in 2008 just keeps growing. Santos, and paul bloom yale university abstract n in a study explo ring the orig ins of cogni tive diss onance, presc hoole rs and capu chins were give n a choic e betw een two equa lly prefe rred alte rnatives two. The publication in 1957 of festinger theory of cognitive dissonance stimulated widespread interest among psychologists in the issue of cognitive discrepancies and their motivating effects.
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