Chapter 6

Question 1

Heaven’s Gate Cult (1 of 2)

Answer 1

Believed that a space ship was coming to transport them
Needed to rid selves of “current containers” (own body)
Spaceship failed to appear behind Hale-Bopp Comet
Continued with plan anyway
Mass suicide

What is the process by which intelligent, sane people can succumb to such fantastic thinking and self-destructive behavior?

Question 2

Cognitive dissonance:

Answer 2

Discomfort that people feel when two cognitions (beliefs, attitudes) conflict, or when they behave in ways that are inconsistent with their conception of themselves

Question 3

When Cognitions Conflict

Answer 3

Important and provocative social psychological theory
Threats to self-image
Induces powerful, upsetting dissonance

Question 4

Three Ways to Reduce Dissonance

Answer 4

Change behavior
Justify behavior by changing one of the dissonant cognitions
Justify behavior by adding new cognitions

Question 5

Teen Cognitions for Smoking

Answer 5

Teenagers who smoke usually justify their actions with such cognitions as “Smoking is cool”; “I want to be like my friends”; “In movies, everyone smokes”; “I’m healthy, nothing is going to happen to me”; or “Adults are always on my back about stuff I do.”

Question 6

Decisions, Decisions, Decisions

Answer 6

Every time we make a decision, we experience dissonance.
Chosen alternative has some negative aspects
Rejected alternative has some positive aspects

Question 7

The College Decision

Answer 7

Life is full of tough choices, like where to attend college. Once we make a decision, we often inflate the importance of positive aspects of our choice (i.e., the college we selected) and minimize the positive aspects of the other alternatives (i.e., the colleges we didn’t select).

Question 8

Distorting Our Likes and Dislikes
(1 of 2)

Answer 8

Distort likes and dislikes
Downplay
Negative aspects of chosen alternative
Positive aspects of rejected alternative

Question 9

Postdecision dissonance

Answer 9

Dissonance aroused after making a decision, typically reduced by enhancing the attractiveness of the chosen alternative and devaluating the rejected alternatives

Question 10

The Permanence of the Decision

Answer 10

More important decisions = more dissonance
Greater permanence = more dissonance
Permanence of decision
How difficult it is to revoke

Question 11

Buying a New Car: What Postdecision Effect?

Answer 11

All sales are final. When will these customers be happier with their new car: ten minutes before the purchase or ten minutes after?

Question 12

Creating the Illusion of Irrevocability
(1 of 2)

Answer 12

When decisions are permanent (irrevocable)
Dissonance increases
Motivation to reduce dissonance increases

Question 13

Lowballing:

Answer 13

Salesperson induces a customer to agree to purchase a product at a very low cost, subsequently claims it was an error, and then raises the price.
Frequently, the customer will agree to make the purchase at the inflated price.

Question 14

Three Reasons Lowballing Works

Answer 14

1. Sense of commitment
2. Sense of commitment triggers the anticipation of an exciting event
3. Price only slightly higher than other prices elsewhere

Question 15

Justification of effort:

Answer 15

The tendency for individuals to increase their liking for something they have worked hard to attain

Question 16

External justification:

Answer 16

A reason or an explanation for dissonant personal behavior that resides outside the individual (e.g., to receive a large reward or avoid a severe punishment)

Question 17

Internal justification:

Answer 17

The reduction of dissonance by changing something about oneself (e.g., one’s attitude or behavior)

Question 18

Counterattitudinal Advocacy

Answer 18

Stating an opinion or attitude that runs counter to one’s private belief or attitude

Question 19

Justifying Good Deeds and Harmful Acts

Answer 19

Dissonance theory predicts that when we
dislike someone, if we do them a favor, we
will like them more.
Behavior is dissonant with attitude
Change attitude about person to resolve dissonance
“The Ben Franklin effect”

Question 20

The Ben Franklin Effect

Answer 20

Without realizing it, Ben Franklin may have been the first dissonance theorist.

Question 21

Moral dilemmas

Answer 21

Implications for self-esteem

Question 22

Dissonance reduction

Answer 22

People may behave either more ethically or
less ethically in the future

Question 23

If threat of punishment for engaging in a
forbidden behavior is severe

Answer 23

There is sufficient external justification for
refraining from behavior

Question 24

If punishment is less severe

Answer 24

–There is insufficient external justification
–Creates greater need for internal justification
▪Change attitudes via self-persuasio

Question 25

Insufficient punishment:

Answer 25

The dissonance aroused when individuals lack sufficient external justification for having resisted a desired activity or object, usually resulting in individuals’ devaluing the forbidden activity or object

Question 26

*When external justification for resisting an object or activity is insufficient

Answer 26

–Dissonance is aroused –Reduce dissonance by ▪Self-persuasion –e.g., devaluing forbidden activity or object

Question 27

The Lasting Effects of Self-Persuasion

Answer 27

Aronson and Carlsmith 1963 study: Children rated the attractiveness of toys, then were forbidden to play with toy they found most attractive. IV = Severity of threatened punishment –½ children: Threat of mild punishment if they disobeyed and played with toy –½ children: Threat of severe punishment *DV = rating of toy attractiveness

Question 28

The Lasting Effects of Self-Persuasion

Answer 28

*Threat of severe punishment –Forbidden toy remained highly attractive ▪No change in attitude ▪Had sufficient external justification for resisting toy

Question 29

The Lasting Effects of Self-Persuasion

Answer 29

Threat of mild punishment –Forbidden toy was rated as less attractive –External justification was insufficient –Resolved dissonance through internal justification ▪Changed attitude about toy

Question 30

The Hypocrisy Paradigm (1 of 2)

Answer 30

Induce hypocrisy –Make person aware of conflict between ▪Attitudes ▪Behavior –Hypocrisy creates dissonance –Reduce dissonance by changing behavior ▪e.g., attitudes about condoms and use of condoms

Question 31

The Hypocrisy Paradigm

Answer 31

Students in the hypocrisy condition were subsequently more likely to buy condoms than students in any of the other conditions.

Question 32

Self-affirmation theory

Answer 32

–The idea that people can reduce threats to their self-esteem by affirming themselves in areas unrelated to the source of the threat

Question 33

Self- Affirmation

Answer 33

*Bolster the self-concept *Reducing dissonance by adding a cognition about other positive attributes –e.g., smoker who fails to quit ▪“Not very smart of me to be smoking, but I’m really a very good mathematician!”

Question 34

Dissonance in Close Relationships: Self-Evaluation Maintenance Theory

Answer 34

Self-evaluation maintenance theory: –Idea that we experience dissonance when someone close to us outperforms us in an area that is central to our self-esteem –Dissonance can be reduced by becoming less close to the person, changing our behavior so that we now outperform them, or deciding that the area is not that important to us after all.

Question 35

Ways to Reduce Dissonance in Relationships

Answer 35

*Distance self from the person who outperforms us *Change how relevant the task is to our self-esteem *Change one’s performance relative to the other person’s

Question 36

Ways to Reduce Dissonance in Relationships

Answer 36

*Distance self from the person who outperforms us *Change how relevant the task is to our self-esteem *Change one’s performance relative to the other person’s

Question 37

Some Concluding Thoughts on Dissonance and Self-Esteem

Answer 37

*Understanding cognitive dissonance allows one to understand some extreme behaviors (e.g., Heaven’s Gate). *Dissonance-reducing behavior maintains self-esteem. *But must also learn from mistakes and incorrect beliefs

Question 38

Copyright © 2019, 2016, 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Politics and Self-Justification

Answer 38

Example: War in Iraq based on belief of WMDs *When no WMDs were found, had to reduce dissonance between two thoughts 1. “We believed there were WMDs--that justified this war.” 2. “We were wrong.”

Question 39

Politics and Self-Justification

Answer 39

Justified war by stating goal was to liberate nation from cruel dictator

Question 40

Overcoming Dissonance

Answer 40

*Acknowledging mistakes and taking responsibility is easier said than done. *Process of self-justification is unconscious, but once we know we can justify our actions, we can monitor our thinking and behavior. *When you are confronted with evidence that you are wrong, will you justify that mistake or strive to correct it?

Question 41

Prosecutors and Dissonance

Answer 41

After DNA testing proved that he could not have committed the rape he was convicted of, David Lee Wiggins was released from a Texas prison in 2012 after serving 23 years. How might dissonance explain why prosecutors in wrongful conviction cases often have a hard time accepting that the defendant is actually not guilty?

Question 42

Narcissism and the Dangers of Too Much Self-Esteem

Answer 42

Self-esteem –Overall evaluation (positive or negative) that people have of themselves

Question 43

Benefits of High Self-Esteem

Answer 43

*Buffers against thoughts of own mortality *Motivates us to persevere when going gets rough

Question 44

Narcissism

Answer 44

*Combination of excessive self-love and a lack of empathy toward others *Has increased in college students since the 1980s

Question 45

Narcissus at the Pool

Answer 45

In Greek mythology, Narcissus fell in love with his own reflection in a pool of water and was so fond of his own image that he couldn’t leave and eventually died. Today, narcissism refers to the combination of excessive self-love and a lack of empathy toward others.

Question 46

Are People Becoming More Narcissistic?

Answer 46

The top (red) line shows average scores for college students on the Narcissistic Personality Inventory (NPI), a common measure of narcissism, from the years 1980 to 2008. The bottom (blue) line shows the percentage of first-person pronouns (e.g., I, me, mine) in the lyrics of the 10 most popular songs of the year from 1980 to 2007. As you can see there has been a steady increase on both measures over time, suggesting that narcissism may be increasing