Author Question: Describe cultural differences in the extent to which individuals experience dissonance. What will ... (Read 109 times)

luvbio · **on:** Jun 22, 2018

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

What will be an ideal response?

Question 2

What did Leon Festinger's (1957) original formulation of dissonance theory posit? Be sure to address what cognitive dissonance is, how and when it arises, and what people do to reduce it.

What will be an ideal response?

jamesnevil303 · **Reply #1 on:** Jun 22, 2018

Answer to Question 1

Answer: Triandis has argued that in cultures that are less individualistic, dissonance-reducing behaviors might be less common. In individualistic cultures in which the self is defined independently of othersrather than interdependent with othersthe threat to self-esteem may be larger in the aftermath of dissonant acts; thereby people are more likely to use self-justification to resolve the dissonance. In more collectivist cultures, a person may not feel the need to justify his/her own behavior if dissonance is aroused. However, if the person's behavior has impacted or shamed others, dissonance is more likely to be experienced.

Answer to Question 2

Answer: First, cognitive dissonance is a state of unpleasant arousal (like hunger or thirst) that we are motivated to reduce. Dissonance arises when cognitions that we hold are psychologically inconsistent with one another. To reduce dissonance, we can change our behaviors to bring them into line with our cognitions; we can also change the cognitions themselves by changing one or more cognitions to make them more consonant with our behaviors or with one another; or we can add new cognitions that are consonant with our behaviors or other cognitions.