{"id":315,"date":"2015-02-06T23:15:43","date_gmt":"2015-02-06T23:15:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/courses.candelalearning.com\/ospsych\/?post_type=chapter&#038;p=315"},"modified":"2024-05-17T15:02:28","modified_gmt":"2024-05-17T15:02:28","slug":"attitudes-and-persuasion","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/waymaker-psychology\/chapter\/attitudes-and-persuasion\/","title":{"raw":"Attitudes","rendered":"Attitudes"},"content":{"raw":"<div>\r\n<div class=\"textbox learning-objectives\">\r\n<h3>Learning Objectives<\/h3>\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>Define attitude and recognize\u00a0how people\u2019s attitudes are internally changed through cognitive dissonance<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/div>\r\nSocial psychologists have documented how the power of the situation can influence our behaviors. Now we turn to how the power of the situation can influence our attitudes and beliefs. <strong>Attitude<\/strong> is our evaluation of a person, an idea, or an object. We have attitudes for many things ranging from products that we might pick up in the supermarket to people around the world to political policies. Typically, attitudes are favorable or unfavorable: positive or negative (Eagly &amp; Chaiken, 1993). And, they have three components: an <em>affective component<\/em> (feelings), a <em>behavioral component<\/em> (the effect of the attitude on behavior), and a <em>cognitive component<\/em> (belief and knowledge) (Rosenberg &amp; Hovland, 1960).\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\nFor example, you may hold a positive attitude toward recycling. This attitude should result in positive feelings toward recycling (such as \u201cIt makes me feel good to recycle\u201d or \u201cI enjoy knowing that I make a small difference in reducing the amount of waste that ends up in landfills\u201d). Certainly, this attitude should be reflected in our behavior: You actually recycle as often as you can. Finally, this attitude will be reflected in favorable thoughts (for example, \u201cRecycling is good for the environment\u201d or \u201cRecycling is the responsible thing to do\u201d).\r\n\r\nOur attitudes and beliefs are not only influenced by external forces, but also by internal influences that we control. Like our behavior, our attitudes and thoughts are not always changed by situational pressures, but they can be consciously changed by our own free will. In this section we discuss the conditions under which we would want to change our own attitudes and beliefs.\r\n<div class=\"textbox tryit\">\r\n<h3>Try It<\/h3>\r\nhttps:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/21cfd7a9-4dc3-49c5-9495-aff0d84aaa2e\r\n\r\nhttps:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/1d91d8cd-9686-427d-92db-f5b45c81dd2c\r\n\r\nhttps:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/31f5b4b3-44af-4c18-8a91-3c752574a2c5\r\n\r\nhttps:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/0cf7aca6-ceb2-4656-992e-ca898f496f26\r\n\r\nhttps:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/dd21ffef-fac6-4a1f-a687-c05d42e730b2\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<section data-depth=\"1\">\r\n<h2>What is Cognitive Dissonance?<\/h2>\r\nSocial psychologists have documented that feeling good about ourselves and maintaining positive self-esteem is a powerful motivator of human behavior (Tavris &amp; Aronson, 2008). In the United States, members of the predominant culture typically think very highly of themselves and view themselves as good people who are above average on many desirable traits (Ehrlinger, Gilovich, &amp; Ross, 2005). Often, our behavior, attitudes, and beliefs are affected when we experience a threat to our self-esteem or positive self-image. Psychologist Leon Festinger (1957) defined <strong>cognitive dissonance<\/strong> as psychological discomfort arising from holding two or more inconsistent attitudes, behaviors, or cognitions (thoughts, beliefs, or opinions). Festinger\u2019s theory of cognitive dissonance states that when we experience a conflict in our behaviors, attitudes, or beliefs that runs counter to our positive self-perceptions, we experience psychological discomfort (dissonance). For example, if you believe smoking is bad for your health but you continue to smoke, you experience conflict between your belief and behavior.\r\n<figure>\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"975\"]<img src=\"https:\/\/textimgs.s3.amazonaws.com\/ospsych\/m49120\/CNX_Psych_12_03_dissonance.jpg#fixme\" alt=\"A diagram shows the process of cognitive dissonance. There is cognitive dissonance when someone believes \u201cSmoking is bad for your health\u201d and \u201cI am a smoker\u201d. A flow diagram joins these statements in a process labeled, \u201cRemove dissonance tension,\u201d with two possible flows. The first flow path shows the warning on a pack of cigarettes with a checkmark imposed over the image that is labeled, \u201cSmoking is bad for your health.\u201d The path then shows a photograph of an arm with a nicotine patch that is labeled, \u201cI quit smoking.\u201d The second flow path shows the warning on a pack of cigarettes with a question mark imposed over the image and is labeled, \u201cResearch is inconclusive,\u201d then shows a photograph of a person smoking labeled, \u201cI am still a smoker.\u201d\" width=\"975\" height=\"875\" data-media-type=\"image\/jpeg\" \/> <strong>Figure 1<\/strong>. Cognitive dissonance is aroused by inconsistent beliefs and behaviors. Believing cigarettes are bad for your health, but smoking cigarettes anyway, can cause cognitive dissonance. To reduce cognitive dissonance, individuals can change their behavior, as in quitting smoking, or change their belief, such as discounting the evidence that smoking is harmful. (credit \u201ccigarettes\u201d: modification of work by CDC\/Debora Cartagena; \u201cpatch\u201d: modification of \"RegBarc\"\/Wikimedia Commons; \u201csmoking\u201d: modification of work by Tim Parkinson)[\/caption]<\/figure>\r\nLater research documented that only conflicting cognitions that threaten individuals\u2019 positive self-image cause dissonance (Greenwald &amp; Ronis, 1978). Additional research found that dissonance is not only psychologically uncomfortable but also can cause physiological arousal (Croyle &amp; Cooper, 1983) and activate regions of the brain important in emotions and cognitive functioning (van Veen, Krug, Schooler, &amp; Carter, 2009). When we experience cognitive dissonance, we are motivated to decrease it because it is psychologically, physically, and mentally uncomfortable. We can reduce cognitive dissonance by bringing our cognitions, attitudes, and behaviors in line\u2014that is, making them harmonious. This can be done in different ways, such as:\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>changing our discrepant behavior (e.g., stop smoking),<\/li>\r\n \t<li>changing our cognitions through rationalization or denial (e.g., telling ourselves that health risks can be reduced by smoking filtered cigarettes),<\/li>\r\n \t<li>adding a new cognition (e.g., \u201cSmoking suppresses my appetite so I don\u2019t become overweight, which is good for my health.\u201d).<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\nA classic example of cognitive dissonance is John, a 20-year-old who enlists in the military. During boot camp he is awakened at 5:00 a.m., is chronically sleep deprived, yelled at, covered in sand flea bites, physically bruised and battered, and mentally exhausted (Figure 2). It gets worse. Recruits that make it to week 11 of boot camp have to do 54 hours of continuous training.\r\n<figure>\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"\" align=\"alignright\" width=\"488\"]<img src=\"https:\/\/textimgs.s3.amazonaws.com\/ospsych\/m49120\/CNX_Psych_12_03_marinesn.jpg#fixme\" alt=\"A photograph shows a person doing pushups while a military leader stands over the person; other people are doing jumping jacks in the background.\" width=\"488\" height=\"325\" data-media-type=\"image\/jpeg\" \/> <strong>Figure 2<\/strong>. A person who has chosen a difficult path must deal with cognitive dissonance in addition to many other discomforts. (credit: Tyler J. Bolken)[\/caption]<\/figure>\r\nNot surprisingly, John is miserable. No one likes to be miserable. In this type of situation, people can change their beliefs, their attitudes, or their behaviors. The last option, a change of behaviors, is not available to John. He has signed on to the military for four years, and he cannot legally leave.\r\n\r\nIf John keeps thinking about how miserable he is, it is going to be a very long four years. He will be in a constant state of cognitive dissonance. As an alternative to this misery, John can change his beliefs or attitudes. He can tell himself, \u201cI am becoming stronger, healthier, and sharper. I am learning discipline and how to defend myself and my country. What I am doing is really important.\u201d If this is his belief, he will realize that he is becoming stronger through his challenges. He then will feel better and not experience cognitive dissonance, which is an uncomfortable state.\r\n<div class=\"textbox tryit\">\r\n<h3>Try It<\/h3>\r\nhttps:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/5a024665-ef56-480f-8504-da64c06e046a\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<section data-depth=\"2\">\r\n<h2 data-type=\"title\">Effect of Initiation<\/h2>\r\nThe military example demonstrates the observation that a difficult initiation into a group influences us to like the group more. Another social psychology concept, <strong>justification of effort<\/strong>, suggests that we value goals and achievements that we put a lot of effort into. According to this theory, if something is difficult for us to achieve, we believe it is more worthwhile. For example, if you move to an apartment and spend hours assembling a dresser you bought from Ikea, you will value that more than a fancier dresser your parents bought you. We do not want to have wasted time and effort to join a group that we eventually leave. A classic experiment by Aronson and Mills (1959) demonstrated this justification of effort effect. College students volunteered to join a campus group that would meet regularly to discuss the psychology of sex. Participants were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: no initiation, an easy initiation, and a difficult initiation into the group. After participating in the first discussion, which was deliberately made very boring, participants rated how much they liked the group. Participants who underwent a difficult initiation process to join the group rated the group more favorably than did participants with an easy initiation or no initiation (Figure 3).\r\n<figure>\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_6993\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"649\"]<a href=\"https:\/\/s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/courses-images\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/855\/2015\/02\/04225014\/22ddaa3be79c2875dab1e1b248b49da699de7b87.jpeg\"><img class=\"size-full wp-image-6993\" src=\"https:\/\/s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/courses-images\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/855\/2015\/02\/04225014\/22ddaa3be79c2875dab1e1b248b49da699de7b87.jpeg\" alt=\"A bar graph has an x-axis labeled, \u201cDifficulty of initiation\u201d and a y-axis labeled, \u201cRelative magnitude of liking a group.\u201d The liking of the group is low to moderate for the groups whose difficulty of initiation was \u201cnone\u201d or \u201ceasy,\u201d but high for the group whose difficulty of initiation was \u201cdifficult.\u201d\" width=\"649\" height=\"274\" \/><\/a> <strong>Figure 3<\/strong>. Justification of effort has a distinct effect on a person liking a group. Students in the difficult initiation condition liked the group more than students in other conditions due to the justification of effort.[\/caption]<\/figure>\r\nSimilar effects can be seen in a more recent study of how student effort affects course evaluations. Heckert, Latier, Ringwald-Burton, and Drazen (2006) surveyed 463 undergraduates enrolled in courses at a midwestern university about the amount of effort that their courses required of them. In addition, the students were also asked to evaluate various aspects of the course. Given what you\u2019ve just read, it will come as no surprise that those courses that were associated with the highest level of effort were evaluated as being more valuable than those that did not. Furthermore, students indicated that they learned more in courses that required more effort, regardless of the grades that they received in those courses (Heckert et al., 2006).\r\n\r\nBesides the classic military example and group initiation, can you think of other examples of cognitive dissonance? Here is one: Marco and Maria live in Fairfield County, Connecticut, which is one of the wealthiest areas in the United States and has a very high cost of living. Marco telecommutes from home and Maria does not work outside of the home. They rent a very small house for more than $3000 a month. Maria shops at consignment stores for clothes and economizes where she can. They complain that they never have any money and that they cannot buy anything new. When asked why they do not move to a less expensive location, since Marco telecommutes, they respond that Fairfield County is beautiful, they love the beaches, and they feel comfortable there. How does the theory of cognitive dissonance apply to Marco and Maria\u2019s choices?\r\n<div class=\"textbox tryit\">\r\n<h3>Try It<\/h3>\r\nhttps:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/c5644feb-b1ef-48c9-82d7-9931d3bc6f93\r\n\r\nhttps:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/502ef9e4-d752-4dfc-8125-6f91b79d321a\r\n\r\nhttps:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/6001f4a0-874a-4d89-be9c-02490acc70d5\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/section><\/section><section data-depth=\"1\"><\/section><section data-depth=\"1\">\r\n<div>\r\n<div class=\"textbox learning-objectives\">\r\n<h3>Think It Over<\/h3>\r\n<section data-depth=\"1\">\r\n<div data-type=\"exercise\">\r\n<div data-type=\"problem\">\r\n\r\nCognitive dissonance often arises after making an important decision, called post-decision dissonance (or in popular terms, buyer\u2019s remorse). Describe a recent decision you made that caused dissonance and describe how you resolved it.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/section><\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<div><section>\r\n<div class=\"textbox key-takeaways\">\r\n<h3>Glossary<\/h3>\r\n<div data-type=\"definition\"><strong>attitude:\u00a0<\/strong>evaluations of or feelings toward a person, idea, or object that are typically positive or negative<\/div>\r\n<div data-type=\"definition\"><strong>cognitive dissonance:\u00a0<\/strong>psychological discomfort that arises from a conflict in a person\u2019s behaviors, attitudes, or beliefs that runs counter to one\u2019s positive self-perception<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/section><\/div>\r\n<\/section>","rendered":"<div>\n<div class=\"textbox learning-objectives\">\n<h3>Learning Objectives<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Define attitude and recognize\u00a0how people\u2019s attitudes are internally changed through cognitive dissonance<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p>Social psychologists have documented how the power of the situation can influence our behaviors. Now we turn to how the power of the situation can influence our attitudes and beliefs. <strong>Attitude<\/strong> is our evaluation of a person, an idea, or an object. We have attitudes for many things ranging from products that we might pick up in the supermarket to people around the world to political policies. Typically, attitudes are favorable or unfavorable: positive or negative (Eagly &amp; Chaiken, 1993). And, they have three components: an <em>affective component<\/em> (feelings), a <em>behavioral component<\/em> (the effect of the attitude on behavior), and a <em>cognitive component<\/em> (belief and knowledge) (Rosenberg &amp; Hovland, 1960).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>For example, you may hold a positive attitude toward recycling. This attitude should result in positive feelings toward recycling (such as \u201cIt makes me feel good to recycle\u201d or \u201cI enjoy knowing that I make a small difference in reducing the amount of waste that ends up in landfills\u201d). Certainly, this attitude should be reflected in our behavior: You actually recycle as often as you can. Finally, this attitude will be reflected in favorable thoughts (for example, \u201cRecycling is good for the environment\u201d or \u201cRecycling is the responsible thing to do\u201d).<\/p>\n<p>Our attitudes and beliefs are not only influenced by external forces, but also by internal influences that we control. Like our behavior, our attitudes and thoughts are not always changed by situational pressures, but they can be consciously changed by our own free will. In this section we discuss the conditions under which we would want to change our own attitudes and beliefs.<\/p>\n<div class=\"textbox tryit\">\n<h3>Try It<\/h3>\n<p>\t<iframe id=\"assessment_practice_21cfd7a9-4dc3-49c5-9495-aff0d84aaa2e\" class=\"resizable\" src=\"https:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/21cfd7a9-4dc3-49c5-9495-aff0d84aaa2e?iframe_resize_id=assessment_practice_id_21cfd7a9-4dc3-49c5-9495-aff0d84aaa2e\" frameborder=\"0\" style=\"border:none;width:100%;height:100%;min-height:300px;\"><br \/>\n\t<\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>\t<iframe id=\"assessment_practice_1d91d8cd-9686-427d-92db-f5b45c81dd2c\" class=\"resizable\" src=\"https:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/1d91d8cd-9686-427d-92db-f5b45c81dd2c?iframe_resize_id=assessment_practice_id_1d91d8cd-9686-427d-92db-f5b45c81dd2c\" frameborder=\"0\" style=\"border:none;width:100%;height:100%;min-height:300px;\"><br \/>\n\t<\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>\t<iframe id=\"assessment_practice_31f5b4b3-44af-4c18-8a91-3c752574a2c5\" class=\"resizable\" src=\"https:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/31f5b4b3-44af-4c18-8a91-3c752574a2c5?iframe_resize_id=assessment_practice_id_31f5b4b3-44af-4c18-8a91-3c752574a2c5\" frameborder=\"0\" style=\"border:none;width:100%;height:100%;min-height:300px;\"><br \/>\n\t<\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>\t<iframe id=\"assessment_practice_0cf7aca6-ceb2-4656-992e-ca898f496f26\" class=\"resizable\" src=\"https:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/0cf7aca6-ceb2-4656-992e-ca898f496f26?iframe_resize_id=assessment_practice_id_0cf7aca6-ceb2-4656-992e-ca898f496f26\" frameborder=\"0\" style=\"border:none;width:100%;height:100%;min-height:300px;\"><br \/>\n\t<\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>\t<iframe id=\"assessment_practice_dd21ffef-fac6-4a1f-a687-c05d42e730b2\" class=\"resizable\" src=\"https:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/dd21ffef-fac6-4a1f-a687-c05d42e730b2?iframe_resize_id=assessment_practice_id_dd21ffef-fac6-4a1f-a687-c05d42e730b2\" frameborder=\"0\" style=\"border:none;width:100%;height:100%;min-height:300px;\"><br \/>\n\t<\/iframe><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<section data-depth=\"1\">\n<h2>What is Cognitive Dissonance?<\/h2>\n<p>Social psychologists have documented that feeling good about ourselves and maintaining positive self-esteem is a powerful motivator of human behavior (Tavris &amp; Aronson, 2008). In the United States, members of the predominant culture typically think very highly of themselves and view themselves as good people who are above average on many desirable traits (Ehrlinger, Gilovich, &amp; Ross, 2005). Often, our behavior, attitudes, and beliefs are affected when we experience a threat to our self-esteem or positive self-image. Psychologist Leon Festinger (1957) defined <strong>cognitive dissonance<\/strong> as psychological discomfort arising from holding two or more inconsistent attitudes, behaviors, or cognitions (thoughts, beliefs, or opinions). Festinger\u2019s theory of cognitive dissonance states that when we experience a conflict in our behaviors, attitudes, or beliefs that runs counter to our positive self-perceptions, we experience psychological discomfort (dissonance). For example, if you believe smoking is bad for your health but you continue to smoke, you experience conflict between your belief and behavior.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<div style=\"width: 985px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/textimgs.s3.amazonaws.com\/ospsych\/m49120\/CNX_Psych_12_03_dissonance.jpg#fixme\" alt=\"A diagram shows the process of cognitive dissonance. There is cognitive dissonance when someone believes \u201cSmoking is bad for your health\u201d and \u201cI am a smoker\u201d. A flow diagram joins these statements in a process labeled, \u201cRemove dissonance tension,\u201d with two possible flows. The first flow path shows the warning on a pack of cigarettes with a checkmark imposed over the image that is labeled, \u201cSmoking is bad for your health.\u201d The path then shows a photograph of an arm with a nicotine patch that is labeled, \u201cI quit smoking.\u201d The second flow path shows the warning on a pack of cigarettes with a question mark imposed over the image and is labeled, \u201cResearch is inconclusive,\u201d then shows a photograph of a person smoking labeled, \u201cI am still a smoker.\u201d\" width=\"975\" height=\"875\" data-media-type=\"image\/jpeg\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\"><strong>Figure 1<\/strong>. Cognitive dissonance is aroused by inconsistent beliefs and behaviors. Believing cigarettes are bad for your health, but smoking cigarettes anyway, can cause cognitive dissonance. To reduce cognitive dissonance, individuals can change their behavior, as in quitting smoking, or change their belief, such as discounting the evidence that smoking is harmful. (credit \u201ccigarettes\u201d: modification of work by CDC\/Debora Cartagena; \u201cpatch\u201d: modification of &#8220;RegBarc&#8221;\/Wikimedia Commons; \u201csmoking\u201d: modification of work by Tim Parkinson)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Later research documented that only conflicting cognitions that threaten individuals\u2019 positive self-image cause dissonance (Greenwald &amp; Ronis, 1978). Additional research found that dissonance is not only psychologically uncomfortable but also can cause physiological arousal (Croyle &amp; Cooper, 1983) and activate regions of the brain important in emotions and cognitive functioning (van Veen, Krug, Schooler, &amp; Carter, 2009). When we experience cognitive dissonance, we are motivated to decrease it because it is psychologically, physically, and mentally uncomfortable. We can reduce cognitive dissonance by bringing our cognitions, attitudes, and behaviors in line\u2014that is, making them harmonious. This can be done in different ways, such as:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>changing our discrepant behavior (e.g., stop smoking),<\/li>\n<li>changing our cognitions through rationalization or denial (e.g., telling ourselves that health risks can be reduced by smoking filtered cigarettes),<\/li>\n<li>adding a new cognition (e.g., \u201cSmoking suppresses my appetite so I don\u2019t become overweight, which is good for my health.\u201d).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>A classic example of cognitive dissonance is John, a 20-year-old who enlists in the military. During boot camp he is awakened at 5:00 a.m., is chronically sleep deprived, yelled at, covered in sand flea bites, physically bruised and battered, and mentally exhausted (Figure 2). It gets worse. Recruits that make it to week 11 of boot camp have to do 54 hours of continuous training.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<div style=\"width: 498px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/textimgs.s3.amazonaws.com\/ospsych\/m49120\/CNX_Psych_12_03_marinesn.jpg#fixme\" alt=\"A photograph shows a person doing pushups while a military leader stands over the person; other people are doing jumping jacks in the background.\" width=\"488\" height=\"325\" data-media-type=\"image\/jpeg\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\"><strong>Figure 2<\/strong>. A person who has chosen a difficult path must deal with cognitive dissonance in addition to many other discomforts. (credit: Tyler J. Bolken)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Not surprisingly, John is miserable. No one likes to be miserable. In this type of situation, people can change their beliefs, their attitudes, or their behaviors. The last option, a change of behaviors, is not available to John. He has signed on to the military for four years, and he cannot legally leave.<\/p>\n<p>If John keeps thinking about how miserable he is, it is going to be a very long four years. He will be in a constant state of cognitive dissonance. As an alternative to this misery, John can change his beliefs or attitudes. He can tell himself, \u201cI am becoming stronger, healthier, and sharper. I am learning discipline and how to defend myself and my country. What I am doing is really important.\u201d If this is his belief, he will realize that he is becoming stronger through his challenges. He then will feel better and not experience cognitive dissonance, which is an uncomfortable state.<\/p>\n<div class=\"textbox tryit\">\n<h3>Try It<\/h3>\n<p>\t<iframe id=\"assessment_practice_5a024665-ef56-480f-8504-da64c06e046a\" class=\"resizable\" src=\"https:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/5a024665-ef56-480f-8504-da64c06e046a?iframe_resize_id=assessment_practice_id_5a024665-ef56-480f-8504-da64c06e046a\" frameborder=\"0\" style=\"border:none;width:100%;height:100%;min-height:300px;\"><br \/>\n\t<\/iframe><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<section data-depth=\"2\">\n<h2 data-type=\"title\">Effect of Initiation<\/h2>\n<p>The military example demonstrates the observation that a difficult initiation into a group influences us to like the group more. Another social psychology concept, <strong>justification of effort<\/strong>, suggests that we value goals and achievements that we put a lot of effort into. According to this theory, if something is difficult for us to achieve, we believe it is more worthwhile. For example, if you move to an apartment and spend hours assembling a dresser you bought from Ikea, you will value that more than a fancier dresser your parents bought you. We do not want to have wasted time and effort to join a group that we eventually leave. A classic experiment by Aronson and Mills (1959) demonstrated this justification of effort effect. College students volunteered to join a campus group that would meet regularly to discuss the psychology of sex. Participants were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: no initiation, an easy initiation, and a difficult initiation into the group. After participating in the first discussion, which was deliberately made very boring, participants rated how much they liked the group. Participants who underwent a difficult initiation process to join the group rated the group more favorably than did participants with an easy initiation or no initiation (Figure 3).<\/p>\n<figure>\n<div id=\"attachment_6993\" style=\"width: 659px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/courses-images\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/855\/2015\/02\/04225014\/22ddaa3be79c2875dab1e1b248b49da699de7b87.jpeg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-6993\" class=\"size-full wp-image-6993\" src=\"https:\/\/s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/courses-images\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/855\/2015\/02\/04225014\/22ddaa3be79c2875dab1e1b248b49da699de7b87.jpeg\" alt=\"A bar graph has an x-axis labeled, \u201cDifficulty of initiation\u201d and a y-axis labeled, \u201cRelative magnitude of liking a group.\u201d The liking of the group is low to moderate for the groups whose difficulty of initiation was \u201cnone\u201d or \u201ceasy,\u201d but high for the group whose difficulty of initiation was \u201cdifficult.\u201d\" width=\"649\" height=\"274\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-6993\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><strong>Figure 3<\/strong>. Justification of effort has a distinct effect on a person liking a group. Students in the difficult initiation condition liked the group more than students in other conditions due to the justification of effort.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Similar effects can be seen in a more recent study of how student effort affects course evaluations. Heckert, Latier, Ringwald-Burton, and Drazen (2006) surveyed 463 undergraduates enrolled in courses at a midwestern university about the amount of effort that their courses required of them. In addition, the students were also asked to evaluate various aspects of the course. Given what you\u2019ve just read, it will come as no surprise that those courses that were associated with the highest level of effort were evaluated as being more valuable than those that did not. Furthermore, students indicated that they learned more in courses that required more effort, regardless of the grades that they received in those courses (Heckert et al., 2006).<\/p>\n<p>Besides the classic military example and group initiation, can you think of other examples of cognitive dissonance? Here is one: Marco and Maria live in Fairfield County, Connecticut, which is one of the wealthiest areas in the United States and has a very high cost of living. Marco telecommutes from home and Maria does not work outside of the home. They rent a very small house for more than $3000 a month. Maria shops at consignment stores for clothes and economizes where she can. They complain that they never have any money and that they cannot buy anything new. When asked why they do not move to a less expensive location, since Marco telecommutes, they respond that Fairfield County is beautiful, they love the beaches, and they feel comfortable there. How does the theory of cognitive dissonance apply to Marco and Maria\u2019s choices?<\/p>\n<div class=\"textbox tryit\">\n<h3>Try It<\/h3>\n<p>\t<iframe id=\"assessment_practice_c5644feb-b1ef-48c9-82d7-9931d3bc6f93\" class=\"resizable\" src=\"https:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/c5644feb-b1ef-48c9-82d7-9931d3bc6f93?iframe_resize_id=assessment_practice_id_c5644feb-b1ef-48c9-82d7-9931d3bc6f93\" frameborder=\"0\" style=\"border:none;width:100%;height:100%;min-height:300px;\"><br \/>\n\t<\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>\t<iframe id=\"assessment_practice_502ef9e4-d752-4dfc-8125-6f91b79d321a\" class=\"resizable\" src=\"https:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/502ef9e4-d752-4dfc-8125-6f91b79d321a?iframe_resize_id=assessment_practice_id_502ef9e4-d752-4dfc-8125-6f91b79d321a\" frameborder=\"0\" style=\"border:none;width:100%;height:100%;min-height:300px;\"><br \/>\n\t<\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>\t<iframe id=\"assessment_practice_6001f4a0-874a-4d89-be9c-02490acc70d5\" class=\"resizable\" src=\"https:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/6001f4a0-874a-4d89-be9c-02490acc70d5?iframe_resize_id=assessment_practice_id_6001f4a0-874a-4d89-be9c-02490acc70d5\" frameborder=\"0\" style=\"border:none;width:100%;height:100%;min-height:300px;\"><br \/>\n\t<\/iframe><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/section>\n<section data-depth=\"1\"><\/section>\n<section data-depth=\"1\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"textbox learning-objectives\">\n<h3>Think It Over<\/h3>\n<section data-depth=\"1\">\n<div data-type=\"exercise\">\n<div data-type=\"problem\">\n<p>Cognitive dissonance often arises after making an important decision, called post-decision dissonance (or in popular terms, buyer\u2019s remorse). Describe a recent decision you made that caused dissonance and describe how you resolved it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<section>\n<div class=\"textbox key-takeaways\">\n<h3>Glossary<\/h3>\n<div data-type=\"definition\"><strong>attitude:\u00a0<\/strong>evaluations of or feelings toward a person, idea, or object that are typically positive or negative<\/div>\n<div data-type=\"definition\"><strong>cognitive dissonance:\u00a0<\/strong>psychological discomfort that arises from a conflict in a person\u2019s behaviors, attitudes, or beliefs that runs counter to one\u2019s positive self-perception<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\t\t\t <section class=\"citations-section\" role=\"contentinfo\">\n\t\t\t <h3>Candela Citations<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t <div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t <div id=\"citation-list-315\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t <div class=\"licensing\"><div class=\"license-attribution-dropdown-subheading\">CC licensed content, Shared previously<\/div><ul class=\"citation-list\"><li>Attitudes and Persuasion. <strong>Authored by<\/strong>: OpenStax College. <strong>Located at<\/strong>: <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/openstax.org\/books\/psychology-2e\/pages\/12-3-attitudes-and-persuasion\">https:\/\/openstax.org\/books\/psychology-2e\/pages\/12-3-attitudes-and-persuasion<\/a>. <strong>License<\/strong>: <em><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"license\" href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/\">CC BY: Attribution<\/a><\/em>. <strong>License Terms<\/strong>: Download for free at https:\/\/openstax.org\/books\/psychology-2e\/pages\/1-introduction<\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n\t\t\t <\/section>","protected":false},"author":5797,"menu_order":7,"template":"","meta":{"_candela_citation":"[{\"type\":\"cc\",\"description\":\"Attitudes and Persuasion\",\"author\":\"OpenStax College\",\"organization\":\"\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/openstax.org\/books\/psychology-2e\/pages\/12-3-attitudes-and-persuasion\",\"project\":\"\",\"license\":\"cc-by\",\"license_terms\":\"Download for free at https:\/\/openstax.org\/books\/psychology-2e\/pages\/1-introduction\"}]","CANDELA_OUTCOMES_GUID":"33f92df8-9f47-491c-9614-d4ee4a4a664a, 82128631-1753-4570-958c-9cd919379b12","pb_show_title":"on","pb_short_title":"","pb_subtitle":"","pb_authors":[],"pb_section_license":""},"chapter-type":[],"contributor":[],"license":[],"class_list":["post-315","chapter","type-chapter","status-publish","hentry"],"part":522,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/waymaker-psychology\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/315","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/waymaker-psychology\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/waymaker-psychology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/chapter"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/waymaker-psychology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5797"}],"version-history":[{"count":25,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/waymaker-psychology\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/315\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8291,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/waymaker-psychology\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/315\/revisions\/8291"}],"part":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/waymaker-psychology\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/parts\/522"}],"metadata":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/waymaker-psychology\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/315\/metadata\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/waymaker-psychology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=315"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"chapter-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/waymaker-psychology\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapter-type?post=315"},{"taxonomy":"contributor","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/waymaker-psychology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/contributor?post=315"},{"taxonomy":"license","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/waymaker-psychology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/license?post=315"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}