Exam 6: Cognitive Dissonance and the Need to Protect Our Self-Esteem

Mahmoud wants his seven-year-old daughter to learn that littering is bad. According to cognitive dissonance theory, how should Mahmoud teach his daughter not to be a litterbug?

Recall that Aronson and his colleagues asked college students either to compose a persuasive message advocating the use of condoms or to compose and deliver their message in front of a video camera. In addition, half of the participants in each group were made mindful of the times that they didn't use condoms. After completing these tasks, participants were allowed to purchase condoms at a low price. Those students who made a video after being primed to think about their own condom use purchased the most condoms. What do the findings of this experiment demonstrate?

Describe cultural differences in the extent to which individuals experience dissonance.

Recall that Aronson and his colleagues asked college students either to compose a persuasive message advocating the use of condoms or to compose and deliver their message in front of a video camera. Considering which participants in this study later actually purchased more condoms, what would be the best way for a high school health teacher to promote condom use in his or her class?

According to the authors of your text, people experience dissonance __________.

Imagine that you have just moved into a house with four other people. One of your housemates, Tony, doesn't seem to like you all that much. If you were to make use of the Ben Franklin effect, what can you do to increase Tony's liking for you?

Recall that Aronson and Carlsmith (1963) told preschoolers that they were not allowed to play with a toy that the children had already rated as more attractive than other toys. Half of the children were threatened with mild punishment if they disobeyed, and the other half with severe punishment. When the experimenter left the room, none of the children played with the forbidden toy. When the experimenter returned and asked the children to rate all the toys again, those children who received __________.

When someone dehumanizes a victim and successfully reduces dissonance in this way, this is likely to lead to __________.

What are the implications of the research on dehumanizing enemies in war?

A Japanese psychologist by the name of Sakai observed participants partaking in dissonance-reducing behaviors. Sakai also had a fellow group member of the participants observe the dissonance-reducing behavior. The observer then indicated how enjoyable he or she thought a boring task was. Results indicated that the observers experienced __________.

Jecker and Landy (1969) conducted an experiment in which some participants were asked by the experimenter to return the monetary compensation they had received as a special favor to him, while others were asked by the department secretary to return the money as a favor to the psychology department, and still others received no request for the return of their compensation. The researchers found that participants who were approached by the experimenter evaluated him better than did participants in the other two experimental conditions. Why?

The new governor hires you to devise a plan to stop bullying in the schools. Based on the principle of insufficient punishment, what might be a good way to punish bullies?

Jussef is a whiz at spelling. He has won multiple local and regional spelling bees. When he moves to a new state, he makes friends with Marcus, and finds out later that he is a champion speller who has won national competitions. Jussef is likely to feel __________.

Because they provide the potential offender __________, threats of harsh punishment seldom produce positive attitude change.

What is counterattitudinal advocacy? How is it related to notions of internal and external justification?

The authors of your text explain that when political leaders get caught up in a cycle of self-justification, it can have particularly dangerous consequences. What is their advice for avoiding such a cycle in your own life?

Mariah has had a hard semester, and her grades have suffered. She really needs a good grade in psychology to get off academic probation and stay in school. On the next psychology exam, Mariah is sorely tempted to cheat, but she decides not to. Which of the following pairs of cognitions best reflects the source of any dissonance Mariah might experience while deciding not to cheat?

A number of researchers have found that people from __________ cultures are less likely to engage in obvious attempts to reduce cognitive dissonance.

As Nina lights up her fifteenth cigarette of the day, she glances at the surgeon general's warning on the package and shrugs, thinking, "Eh, cancer is for old people, and not only do I have good genes, the research on cigarettes causing cancer is inconclusive." It is unlikely that Nina will change her behavior and quit smoking unless __________.

Because dissonance reduction processes are mostly unconscious, people __________.