The original version of the theory leon festinger formulated the original theory of cognitive dissonance in the mid1950s, and the first formal and complete presentation of. A theory of cognitive dissonance by leon festinger 30jun. People are then motivated to reduce the dissonance, often in. Another argument that may support the use of the environmental frame for animal advocacy is related with behavioral and attitudinal change. From this grant, he was able to write his first document on the social comparison theory and published it in the journal of human relations in 1954. Festingers theory said that when a person holds contradictory elements in cognition producing an unpleasant state called dissonance the person will work to bring the elements back into agreement or congruence.
Leon festinger was the first psychologist to study cognitive dissonance around the 1950s, and his works, such as books and experiments, helped to shed light on the ways in which humans act to decrease cognitive dissonance. Psychologist leon festinger first described the theory of cognitive dissonance in 1957. Leon festingers theory of cognitive dissonance has been widely recognized for its important and influential concepts in areas of motivation and social psychology. It holds that dissonance is experienced whenever one cognition that a person holds follows from the opposite of at least one other cognition that the person holds. The theory of cognitive dissonance festinger, 1957. According to festinger, cognitive dissonance occurs when peoples thoughts and feelings are inconsistent with their behavior, which results in an uncomfortable, disharmonious feeling. Cognitive dissonance theory after 50 years of development. A major theory in social psychology is known as cognitive dissonance. Festingers theory of cognitive dissonance has been one of the most influential theories in social psychology jones, 1985. The number of variations within this approach to selfevaluation regulation is also substantial. Pdf cognitive dissonance theory festinger researchgate. This article was originally published in the encyclopedia. Leon festinger introduced the concept of cognitive dissonance as psychological tension in 1957. Inconsistency among beliefs or behaviors will cause an uncomfortable psychological tension.
Originally published in the journal of abnormal and social psychology in 1959, cognitive consequences of forced compliance by leon festinger and james carlsmith was the first of numerous studies to corroborate the theory of cognitive dissonance. A theory of cognitive dissonance download pdfepub ebook. Leon festinger leon festinger cognitive dissonance. Inasmuch as festingers theory is concerned with attitude change and attempts to discern how persuasive messages are processed in the minds of listeners, there is no doubt that it may be regarded as a communication theory. Chapter 2 cognitive dissonance 23 cognitive dissonance soon after the first studies of selective perception, leon festinger 1957 proposed the theory of cognitive dissonance. Leon festingers theory of cognitive dissonance networked. Dissonance cognitive pdf book manual free download.
A theory of cognitive dissonance stanford university press. Festinger 1957 cited under core books considered three ways to cope with cognitive dissonance. Cognitive dissonance an overview sciencedirect topics. In the early 1950s, the behavioral sciences division of the ford foundation gave leon festinger a grant, which was part of the program of the laboratory for research in social relations. Cognitive dissonance theory social emotive neuroscience lab. But even before festinger was the greek fabulist aesop. Cognitive dissonance theory leon festinger 1957 pdf. Leon festingers social comparison theory the psychology. While at the university of minnesota, festinger read about a cult that believed that the end of the world was at hand. When there is an inconsistency between attitudes or behaviors dissonance, something must change to eliminate the dissonance. Download cognitive dissonance theory leon festinger 1957 book pdf free download link or read online here in pdf.
Leon festinger developed the cognitive dissonance theory festinger, 1957 dissonance occurs when a person perceives a logical inconsistency in their beliefs, when one idea implies the opposite of another. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. An introduction to cognitive dissonance theory and an. He tested the decisionmaking process in a cognitive dissonance experiment cognitive dissonance is a sensation that seems to derive from a conflict between the ideas, beliefs, and values of a certain subject and their behavior. Here, joel cooper presents a comprehensive analysis of the state of dissonance theory, charting the progress of the theory and assessing its impact. The results showed that depressed individuals experienced a state of ambivalence, with negative cognitive, emotional. According to dissonance theory, selfesteem is threatened by inconsistency. Almost half a century ago social psychologist leon festinger developed the cognitive dissonance theory festinger, 1957. Leon festinger introduced cognitive dissonance theory in a 1957 book, a theory of cognitive dissonance. Recently, festinger 1957 proposed a theory con duced is for the person to change. Leon festinger formulated the original theory of cognitive dissonance in the mid1950s, and the first formal and complete presentation of the theory appeared in 1957. Cognitive dissonance theory festinger, 1957 posits that individuals seek to maintain consis tency among multiple cognitions e. In general, social psychologists, always looking for the next great theory, seemed to have shelved this book and its concepts within a couple of decades after it came out in 1957 see leon festingers comments 30 years later in appendix b of cognitive dissonance progress on a pivotal theory in social.
Since the 1950s, dissonance theory has generated hundreds of experiments, many of them among the most clever and entertaining in psychology. Festinger s 1957 cognitive dissonance theory suggests that we have an inner drive to hold all our attitudes and behavior in harmony and avoid disharmony or dissonance. The theory of dissonance is here applied to the problem of why partial reward, delay of reward, and effort expenditure during training result in increased resistance to extinction. Cognitive dissonance theory festinger wiley online library. The magnitude of dissonance is directly proportional to the number of discrepant cognitions and inversely proportional to the number of consonant cognitions that a person has. When there is an inconsistency between attitudes or behaviors dissonance, something must change to eliminate the. All books are in clear copy here, and all files are secure so dont worry about it.
This lack of consistency between various cognitions is known as dissonance. An alternative conceptualization was proposed by festingers theory of cognitive dissonance festinger, 1957, which asserted that organisms are motivated to reduce dissonance, defined as an incompatibility between internal cognitive structures and the situations currently perceived. Festinger theorized that, when an individual holds two or more elements of knowledge that are relevant to each other but inconsistent with one another,astate of. That brings us to the next point, namely the categorization of cognitive dissonance theory. The theory has obviously stood the test of time in that it is mentioned in most general and social psychology textbooks today. The original version of the theory leon festinger formulated the original theory of cognitive dissonance in the mid1950s, and the first formal and complete presentation of the theory appeared in 1957. A theory of cognitive dissonance 1957 pdf cooper cognitive dissonance. Cognitive dissonance arises from incompatibility of thoughts that. Leon festinger and cognitive dissonance exploring your mind. Festingers 1957 cognitive dissonance theory suggests that we have an inner drive to hold all our attitudes and behavior in harmony and avoid disharmony or dissonance.
Cognitive dissonance theory has been known to play out in several ways. Cognitive dissonance theory links actions and attitudes. Cognitive dissonance theory leon festinger 1957 the feeling people have when they find themselves doing things that dont fit with what they know, or having opinions that do not fit with other opinions they hold. Cognitive dissonance was first investigated by leon festinger, arising out of a participant. The main idea underlying cognitive dissonance is that if a person knows of things inconsistent psychologically, he would try in ways to make them consistent. Festinger used the same term, dissonance, to refer to the discrepancy between cognitions and to psychological discomfort. A theory of cognitive dissonance by leon festinger 30jun1957 paperback. An example of this approach is cognitive dissonance theory festinger 1957. Cognitivedissonancetheory after50yearsofdevelopment.
In 1954 leon festinger first posited a theory of cognitive dissonance to describe the psychological phenomenon that occurs in these situations. The theory is somewhat counterintuitive and, in fact, fits into a category of counterintuitive social psychology theories sometimes referred to as. Cognitive dissonance can be seen as an antecedent condition which leads to activity oriented toward dissonance reduction just as hunger leads to activity oriented toward hunger reduction. Pdf a theory of cognitive dissonance semantic scholar.
Cognitive dissonance has been an important and influential theory since leon festinger published his classic work in 1957. A theory of cognitive dissonance leon festinger download. Origins, revisions, and alternative theories cognitions are elements of knowledge that people have about their behavior, attitudes, and environment 1. Cognitive dissonance theory festinger, 1957 continues to develop and inspire new research. Proposed by festinger, the cognitive dissonance theory asserts that people often have two conflicting or inconsistent cognitions which produce a state of tension or discomfort also known as dissonance. Festingers 1957 cognitive dissonance theory suggests that we have an inner drive to hold all our. Cognitive dissonance theory an overview sciencedirect.
These two concepts are theoretically distinct and the first is now referred to as cognitive inconsistency an introduction to cognitive dissonance theory and. Other readers will always be interested in your opinion of the books youve read. This work is a clearly stated theory on how humans think, decide, and defend their decisions. Festinger 1957 theorized that persons are motivated by the unpleasant state of dissonance to engage in psycho logical work so as to reduce the inconsistency. Cognitive dissonance leon festinger according to cognitive dissonance theory, there is a tendency for individuals to seek consistency among their cognitions i. This is known as the principle of cognitive consistency. The underlying theory was developed by l festinger in a theory of cognitive. Festingers theory of cognitive dissonance springerlink. Human nature and the architecture of the mind paperback 7 apr 2003. Festingers 1957 1 cognitive dissonance theory states that two cognitions can be. Leon festinger formulated the original theory of cognitive dis sonance in the mid1950s, and the first formal and complete presentation of the theory appeared in 1957.
In the years since, cognitive dissonance has become a central pillar of psychological theory, as was documented in the first edition of this book. A theory of cognitive dissonance by leon festinger 30jun1957 paperback leon festinger on. She attracted a group of followers who left jobs, schools, and spouses and. In this chapter, the main results of a structuralist analysis of festingers theory of cognitive dissonance and of a typical dissonance experiment are presented and some methodological problems are discusssed from a structuralist point of view. Data were collected and analysed using a qualitative approach inspired by grounded theory. Read online cognitive dissonance theory leon festinger 1957 book pdf free download link book now. Whether youve loved the book or not, if you give your honest and detailed thoughts then people will find new books that are right for them. Keech, reported receiving messages from extraterrestrial aliens that the world would end in a great flood on a specific date.
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