Author Question: Recall that Aronson and Carlsmith (1963) told preschoolers that they were not allowed to play with a ... (Read 92 times)

skymedlock · **on:** Jun 22, 2018

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
a. mild threats reduced their dissonance by rating the forbidden toy as less attractive than before.
b. severe threats increased their dissonance by rating the forbidden toy as more attractive than before.
c. mild threats increased their dissonance by rating the toy as more attractive than before.
d. severe threats reduced their dissonance by rating the toy as less attractive than before.

Question 2

Jan and Michelle would both like to ride a motorcycle. Jan's parents explicitly prohibit her from riding a motorcycle and tell her that she'll be grounded should she choose to disobey them.

Michelle's parents express their concern for her safety and tell her that they would be very disappointed if she decided to take a ride. According to dissonance theory, two months after the warnings, who would be more likely to ride a motorcycle if given the opportunity?
a. Jan would be more likely to decide to ride the motorcycle.
b. Michelle would be more likely to decide to ride the motorcycle.
c. Both would decide to ride the motorcycle, but for different reasons.
d. Neither would decide to ride the motorcycle, but for different reasons.