Cognitive Dissonance Theory
Cognitive Dissonance Theory, developed by Leon Festinger, is concerned with the relationships among cognitions. In this context, cognition can be perceived as a piece of knowledge that may inscribe an element of an attitude, an emotion, a behavior, a value, and so on. For example, the knowledge that you like the color blue is cognition. People hold a multitude of cognitions simultaneously, and these cognitions form irrelevant, consonant or dissonant relationships with one another. Cognitive Irrelevance probably describes the bulk of the relationships among a person's cognitions. Irrelevance simply means that the two cognitions have nothing to do with each other. Two cognitions are consonant if one cognition fits with or is consistent with the other. People like consonance among their cognitions. We do not know whether this aspect is innate or is learned, but people do prefer cognitions that fit together to those that do not. It is this simple observation that gives the theory of cognitive dissonance its interesting form. And, two cognitions are said to be dissonant or incompatible if one cognition follows from the opposite of another. Dissonance occurs when two cognitions are in a dissonant relationship. Di
es may lead to dissonance as drinking may deteriorate health and cause lower grades, while not attending the beer bash may give one's peers a sense of their rejection. An example of cognitive dissonance in my own life occurred over the summer, while I was taking summer courses at Plattsburgh State University. My friends were having a Fourth of July beer bash. Everyone I talked to indicated his or her intentions of going to the Fourth of July beer bash. However, I had a COM410, Leadership Communication, final the next day that I had not studied for. My midterm scores in Gustinaus's class had been low going into the final, but everyone claimed that the his finals are easy every semester. Should I stay home and study for the final or go to this Fourth of July beer bash and excessively consume alcoholic beverages? What happens to people when they discover dissonant cognitions? The answer to this question forms Festinger's theory. Festinger's theory of Cognitive Dissonance states that individuals, when presented with evidence contrary to their worldview or situations in which they must behave contrary to their worldview, experience cognitive dissonance. Dissonance can be simply understood as an "unpleasant state of tension." A person who has dissonant or discrepant cognitions is said to be in a state of psychological dissonance, which is experienced as unpleasant psychologic
Some common words found in the essay are:
Cognitive Irrelevance, Fourth July, Cognitive Dissonance, Leon Festinger, Leadership Communication, beer bash, cognitive dissonance, Plattsburgh University, Dissonance Theory, july beer bash, fourth july beer, magnitude dissonance, fourth july, july beer, final exam, cognitions dissonant, studying final, theory cognitive dissonance, festinger's theory, studying final exam, stay home study, consonant dissonant,
Approximate Word count = 936
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
|
