Exam 6: The Need to Justify Our Actions

Triandis (1995) has argued that dissonance-reducing behaviors may be less prevalent on the surface in societies in which

Research presented in the text (McMillan, Stice, & Rohde, 2011) had high school and college women write essays against the "thin is beautiful" idea. By writing about the emotional and physical costs of pursuing this unhealthy body image, the women showed

Based on MRI research on people who were experiencing and later resolved cognitive dissonance, what would you expect to happen to Mary, who just reduced her dissonant feelings about visiting the tanning salon by telling herself that she isn't genetically predisposed to skin cancer, so it won't affect her?

Rudy thinks that if he ever got kicked off the football team he would be depressed for months, and that his life would lose all meaning. In actuality, his response would probably not be this severe or prolonged. What is Rudy demonstrating?

Based on information from the authors of your text about cognitive dissonance and immoral behavior, which of the following people would be most likely to condone having an extramarital affair?

Willow's mother took away her television privileges as punishment for missing her curfew when the punishment could have been much more severe such as being grounded for a week and losing access to her cell phone. Why is Willow's mother using insufficient punishment, according to dissonance theory?

Jorge has just undergone a three-week initiation process to become a member of a fraternity. During the initiation, he was made to do such things as shave his head, run naked through the cafeteria, and sing obnoxious fraternity songs during classes. Jorge now considers the fraternity the best thing that's ever happened to him and is convinced that his fraternity brothers are friends for life. Jorge's attitude towards his fraternity is probably the result of

Anita spent two months trying to decide whether to buy a PC or a Macintosh. She finally decided on a Mac. Now, Anita most likely

The Pattersons bought their TV from a store with a thirty-day return policy, and the Stevensons bought the same TV from a different store with a policy that "All Sales Are Final!" Based on what the text reports about cognitive dissonance, which family is more likely to be satisfied with their TV?

When people state publicly an opinion that is at odds with their own private attitudes, they are engaging in

After filing your ballot for an election, you are more convinced than you were before filing the ballot that you voted for the best candidate. This example illustrates the idea that when decisions are _______, individuals engage in a greater amount of dissonance reduction.

According to the authors of your text, one of the most powerful determinants of human behavior stems from our need to

The authors of your text present a study in which monkeys were given a choice between different colors of M&Ms- later, their preference for different colors of M&Ms was reassessed. The researchers found that the monkeys

Chloe debated for a long time about whether to take a psychology or a sociology course, both of which looked interesting. She finally chose the psychology course. Now, because she is experiencing ________, she raves about the psychology course to her friends.

Carl and Roger both had similar attitudes about cheating on a partner. However, both were faced with similar situations where they could have cheated on their partners. Now, Carl thinks that cheating is the worst offense one can make in a relationship, whereas Roger thinks that most people would cheat if they were faced with the situation. Explain what could have occurred, both socially and psychologically, that could produce such diverse positions from individuals who shared a similar stance.

In an experiment by Takaku (2006) on road rage, when drivers went through a driving simulation in which they accidentally cut off another driver, and then were cut off themselves, they were quicker to

Why does making a decision tend to generate dissonance, how is this dissonance reduced, and under what conditions is postdecisional dissonance reduction the greatest?

Research using MRIs suggests that when people experience cognitive dissonance, they

Two weeks after making a public statement at odds with his previous positions, which politician is most likely to report to his close friends that he sticks by his most recent (contradictory) statement?

When people try to maintain their self-esteem and reduce cognitive dissonance, they may resort to maladaptive thinking known as