What is Cognitive Dissonance and How Do You Reduce it?

Experiencing cognitive dissonance might lead you to suppress your emotions or deny your feelings, Tzall says. It can cause stress and feelings of inadequacy, and affect your mood, behavior, and decision making. https://ecosoberhouse.com/ “It’s a psychological conflict in which an individual’s beliefs or values do not align with their behaviors, causing internal distress,” says Angeleena Francis, L.M.H.C., executive director of AMFM Healthcare.

You may have experienced this from someone in your life like a family member or co-worker. Forced compliance comes from pressure put on you to do something that conflicts with your beliefs. You value truth above all else because it helps you learn and grow. “Cognitive” refers to knowledge and comprehension, gained through the senses, experiences, or thought processes.

Causes of Cognitive Dissonance

Cognitive dissonance is a theory proposed by Leon Festinger in the 1950s. He talks about this theory in detail in his book “A theory of cognitive dissonance”. He is well known for his theories of “Cognitive Dissonance and Social Comparison”. He is also responsible for the discovery of the relevance of propinquity (Close relationship) in the formation of social ties and bonds.

That’s because if you’re not self-aware, cognitive dissonance can leave you acting and feeling pretty out of character. At this point, you may have noticed a concerning trend in that people often don’t make the best decisions when in a state of cognitive dissonance. Employees often put their morals aside and follow questionable orders from their employer. Conspiracy theorists often disregard solid science that disproves their beliefs. It’s normal to feel uncomfortable when you have to “unlearn” this information or open your mind to allow different theories to enter.

What Is Cognitive Dissonance? Definition and Examples

In most cases, it is a mismatch between what a person believes and their behaviors that induces these uncomfortable feelings. For Festinger, the fact that they were unfazed by their belief being falsified proved his prediction that humans will work to maintain alignment between their behaviors and beliefs. And now, you have Festinger to thank for understanding why we feel conflicted in specific situations. People experience cognitive dissonance for many reasons, but a common trigger is work. “Maybe you’re at a company with a work culture or attitudes that are in opposition or conflict to what you believe,” according to Dr. Scott. School is another catalyst for tension as people are acclimating to a new environment, meeting others and learning new information.

It doesn’t just influence how you feel; it also motivates you to take action to reduce feelings of discomfort. Finally, many of the studies supporting the theory of cognitive dissonance have low ecological validity. For example, turning pegs (as in Festinger’s experiment) is an artificial task that doesn’t happen in everyday life. Festinger’s (1957) treatment for cognitive dissonance cognitive dissonance theory suggests that we have an inner drive to hold all our attitudes and behavior in harmony and avoid disharmony (or dissonance). In fact, it can prompt you to make positive changes when you realize your beliefs and actions are at odds. Cognitive dissonance is a theory in social psychology first proposed by Leon Festinger.

The Five Types of Public Dissonance

Some of these changes can be positive, such as shifting problematic beliefs or harmful habits. Anyone can experience cognitive dissonance, and sometimes, it is unavoidable. People are not always able to behave in a way that matches their beliefs. Since your attitudes and behaviors aren’t lining up, you are going to feel uncomfortable and conflicted and are going to act in ways to try to relieve that discomfort. In order to stop the discomfort, you could act in a handful of ways. So what happens when you’re in a state of dissonance and your thoughts (or beliefs) and behaviors don’t align?

This inconsistency between what we think and how we behave can cause feelings of unease. Sometimes, the ways that people resolve cognitive dissonance contribute to unhealthy behaviors or poor decisions. For example, behaving in ways that are not aligned with your personal values may result in intense feelings of discomfort. Your behavior contradicts not just the beliefs you have about the world, but also the beliefs that you have about yourself. This produces a feeling of mental discomfort leading to an alteration in one of the attitudes, beliefs, or behaviors to reduce the discomfort and restore balance. Everyone experiences cognitive dissonance in some form in their life.

According to this theory, cognitive dissonance describes the discomfort experienced when two cognitions are incompatible with each other. Alternatively, people may take steps to try to resolve the inconsistency. It is possible to resolve cognitive dissonance by either changing one’s behavior or changing one’s beliefs so they are consistent with each other. If a girl tells herself that she doesn’t care what people think about her but keeps trying to impress others anyway.

• For example, you love the environment, but you still use plastic garbage bags.
• It also prevents people from learning new things because if they make a mistake, then they can’t learn from it.
• Dissonance comes up when we realize there are two things opposing each other,” she explains.
• It is beneficial to avoid cognitive dissonance when someone’s beliefs do not line up with their behavior.
• John was present on time and he waited for Maria to join him soon.
• However, cognitive dissonance can also be a tool for personal and social change.