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Cognitive Dissonance In Social Psychology

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Cognitive Dissonance Regardless of context, whenever two or more variables contradict each other, it can create intense feelings of unease. This error in consistency can prompt one to feel confused, uncomfortable, and at times even angry. Though within the realm of social psychology, this general discomfort can be overwhelming when concerning the concept of cognitive dissonance. In short, cognitive dissonance is defined as a subsequent feeling of discomfort when faced with two contradictory cognitions, or when a newly formed cognition does not adhere to one’s self-concept. This leaves us to wonder, what path is taken to reduce this discomfort? The route we follow is often tarped with ambiguity, and in many instances the steps we take toward …show more content…

Festinger’s early advancements in social comparison (also coining the social comparison theory) led to the genesis of the term. Though the theory is still renowned among psychologists as one of the most important concepts within the field, there is still some debate of the term’s external validity. Nonetheless, most agree that the theory of cognitive dissonance is perfectly applicable to most social situations, and studying the theory further can aid us in making healthier decisions and help us create preventative measures against negative …show more content…

Though there is controversy toward the external validity of cognitive dissonance, I believe it to be entirely valid. It is easy to apply the concept to real-world, tangible situations, even if it’s difficult to employ it within experimental conditions. Furthermore, there are many situations that can be framed within the structure of cognitive dissonance, and elaborated on accordingly. Through further investigation into the mechanics of cognitive dissonance, I believe the psychological community can take proactive steps against malevolent behaviors, and further safeguard the public against these behaviors by spreading awareness of how cognitive dissonance can have such a profound influence on our self-concept and

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Steele Verses Bell hooks: Predicament of Life or Predicament of College Life Does our social identities constitute only how we feel about a different situations or could it be possible that the contingencies of our social identities have the power to even attract the stereotype threat that disrupts our confidence in our personal self and performance? With all these facets being affected is it fair to say stereotype threat also has the power to dictate how we treat others? Claude Steele’s fundamental notion to Whistling Vivaldi is that “Stereotype threat is a standard predicament of life” (5 Steele). Chapters 4-8, Steele begins to broaden this conception with introducing his work of stereotype threat and how it shapes our social identities.

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The author states that the one of the many flaws in a democracy is the fact that people have the right to vote without having knowledge on the subject. He understands that people make decisions based off their morals, not on the knowledge they have on a subject. Keohane adds that as a self-defense mechanism people, when they are faced with a mental conflict that occurs where their beliefs or assumptions are contradicted by new information; this is called cognitive dissonance. He goes on to explain the theory of motivated reasoning, which is where people have two facts presented to them where one fact contradicts their principals, and they end up choosing the fact that is closest to their ideals. According to Keohane people with higher self-esteem are more likely to acknowledge new information than people with insecurities.

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This evidence supports the the claim that prejudice is an integral component in both stories by showcasing how unsubstantiated claims can often become reasons to act upon prejudice, that one may feel towards others, frequently to protect one's

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This take on the abstractions of certainty and uncertainty can be applied to the decisions that we make on a daily basis, such as taking a less familiar route to work due to a traffic delay. Although

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People’s memories are greatly affected by preconceptions and the emotions that come with them. When one’s memories are challenged the response is that they must be right, and everyone else must be wrong. Dr. Neil Degrasse Tyson shows this example when during his show “Cosmos” where he inaccurately uses a quote from two different speeches of President George Bush’s to express a science of how stars were named. The quote was implying prejudice tendencies in Mr. Bush right after 9/11, and when Dr. Tyson was confronted of his misinterpretation his overconfidence of his memories he instantly configured that the confronters were incorrect. After evidence proved of his misconception, he admitted to his mistake and publicly apologized.

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Comparable to Mowat, people who are unfamiliar with a subject believe stereotypes that often result in harm to others. Nevertheless, after Mowat crawls into the seemingly empty wolf den to find two wolves watching him, he recognizes his instinct to harm them. Mowat recalls, “If I had had my rifle I believe I might have reacted in brute fury and tried to kill both wolves” (Mowat 245). Thoroughly ashamed of himself for his behavior in this situation, Mowat understands that one’s instincts will always be superior to his or her mind. In this sense, once a person is exposed to a certain stereotype, it is

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Derek also provides an example of Hypothesis 2: Post decision dissonance creates a need for reassurance. Festinger defines post decision dissonance as “ strong doubts experienced after making an important decision” (Griffin, et al). Derek experiences strong post decision dissonance after leaving the Aryan Brotherhood. When he leaves one of the members tells him that he will be punished. This causes dissonance within Derek, he wonders if he made the right decision, and he feels regret almost.

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One would think prejudice is a thing of the past. Unfortunately, that is not the case, prejudice is still a common factor in todays society. Vincent N. Parrillo’s essay “Causes of Prejudice,” helped me to understand how we are affected not just psychologically but in a sociological way as well, as John A. Camacho explains in his A Few Bad Apples opinion piece published in the Pacific Daily News. Both forms of prejudice are continued to be explained through Stud Turkel’s “C.P Ellis,” he gives us an understanding of psychological and sociological prejudice through C.P Ellis’own experiences. This furthers our understanding on how we can be affected by both psychological and sociological prejudices.

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This eventually leads her to challenge her self concepts to extreme levels, causing her to either liberate herself from the façade she created or sink into the role. Easy A describes many genuine psychological phenomena and I am going to focus on three of them; Cognitive dissonance theory, how societal and cultural norms dictate our attitudes and thoughts, and different ways of persuasion. The cognitive dissonance theory is the feeling of unease that is felt when we act in opposition to our attitudes, which causes a shift of attitude in order to be consistent with our behavior. Easy A depicts strongly the theory of cognitive dissonance on numerous occasions.

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Misinformation has had no better outlet than the internet, spawning and being spread by millions of users daily. Like an epidemic, false information spreads throughout the population, infecting the minds of the people that encounter it, however, it is easy to debunk misinformation using logic and proactive research. So, if information is relatively simple to validate, why is false information being readily believed and advocated for by large parts of the population? The answer is that the polarization of politics has given almost every issue a bias and persuasive edge. Organizations, government representatives, and prominent individuals utilize rhetoric that insight anger and anxiety that leaves the public vulnerable to the embracement of misinformation.

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Knowing that “way leads onto way”, it is not likely he will come back. The man must make an important decision regarding which path he will pursue. The speaker, on an impulse, decides to be daring, and take the road less traveled upon. He possibly chose the less taken road, frightened by the idea of missing out on something significant. However, the author predicts that he took the wrong path.

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Since then we have become good friends. Cognitive dissonance is when we feel bad about something we do and then rationalize our behavior by changing the way we feel about the act. An example would be going out with friends and spending more money than you had

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Which road will the speaker take? This question sets the literal and metaphorical divergence in the woods that the speaker will have to face: both an actual path through the woods and the life decisions implied by it. The first extended metaphor of choice happens in these line: the chosen path is the chosen life choices. The speaker will have to choose a road to go down and one not to, presenting the first conflict of choice. He is faced with two different roads that each lead to a different outcome.

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Cognitive dissonance is the sense of mental disorganization or imbalance that may prompt a person to change when new information conflicts with previously organized thought patterns. The text states, “The incompatibly between your behavior and your new knowledge will make you feel uncomfortable” (381). I have experienced cognitive dissonance when preparing for an exam. For instance, I will not study or not study as well as I should for a test. Then when I receive my test back or my score is posted, I realize that I really should have studied a lot harder.

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Aggression is a spoken or physical behavior that causes intentional harm to a person. There are many different theories that argue what the cause of aggression is but this can be divided into two major types: people who think that aggression is inborn and those that view it as a learning behavior. The Social cognitive theory states that we learn behaviors through observation and modeling and this could be implied that we learn aggressive behaviors through observing and imitating others. The Social Cognitive theory claims that people learn behaviors from observation, modeling, and motivation such as positive reinforcement. Psychologists mention that people learn behaviors by imitating models through observational learning; as well as through

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