PSY 2110 Chapter Notes -Cognitive Dissonance

• School: University of Ottawa
• Department: Psychology
• Course: PSY 2110
• Professor: Marie- Lyne Laliberte

Document Summary

Article 11: two derivations from festinger"s theory of cognitive dissonance are tested. Subjects were subjected to a boring experience and then paid to tell someone that the experience had been interesting and enjoyable. The amount of money paid the subject was varied. The private opinion of the subjects concerning the experiences were then determined: the results strongly confirm the theory that was tested. Article 12: both children and monkeys demonstrated a decrease in preference for one of two equally preferred alternatives after they had chosen against it but not when the experimenter had chosen against it. It follows then, that cognitive dissonance reduction may not require these higher-level processes. If cognitive-dissonance reduction occurs in creatures that lack language and complex senses of self, then one must either accept that these processes are mechanistically simpler than previously thought or ascribe richer motivational complexity children and monkeys.