Cognitive Dissonance Theory – What Do You Think?

Schubert, yes, there are many out there who manage just fine while still holding strong dissonant views. Pope Francis is a great example and come to think of it, Jimmy Carter is one as well. He considers himself Evangelical yet never fully imposed it on this country. He believed in the separation of Church and State.

There are people at my place of work who are literally 'out there' when it comes to politics yet manage to hold things down and share a multitude of viewpoints with me. I still scratch my head over that one.

All the best,
Nonoise

One proposition implicit in Festinger’s theory is that we don’t always behave based on what we believe; rather, what we believe may be the result of how we have already behaved.

This proposition seems to me a chicken or egg scenario.
In my view the most common behavioural explanation behind many posts on this forum are displacement theory, transference and denial.
In laymans terms - Johnny always got told what to do when he was a little boy by his father. Therefore when we give Johnny good advice, we remind him of his father. We become the father and the repressed impulses are redirected toward the poster. Denial and self delusion become the remedy of choice and the basis for an outstanding audio system - 'the best I've heard'.

I think cognitive dissonance has been misinterpreted. it arises from a conflict between two perceptions. it is a defense mechanism.

it is a way of misrepresenting what you actually believe about an action, product or opinion.

here is an example. you buy a car, and someone tells you either the car is inferior , or you could have purchased the same car for a lower price. your response is a justification of your action to defend yourself from looking foolish in the eyes of another person.

cognitive dissonance entails making an excuse that might be socially acceptable, when you wish you had not taken the action in the first place.

I could think of an example in audio, when someone buys a solid state amplifier and the result is a degradation in the sound of his stereo system.

when someone points this out, a cognitive dissonance is created and some explanation is offered for the purchase, to justify it.

of course, with foresight, one can avoid such instances, or "mistakes", which are sometimes cited by another person, which often causes discomfort and results in a white lie.

Mrtennis ...

cognitive dissonance entails making an excuse that might be socially acceptable, when you wish you had not taken the action in the first place

I suppose anyone might create a socially acceptable justification to try to excuse stupid behavior that one subsequently realizes was stupid. That seems perfectly intuitive to me; however, it is not what Festinger’s theory of cognitive dissonance is about.

The theory of cognitive dissonance is completely counter-intuitive. It isn’t about making excuses to other people for actions you wish you had not taken. It’s about the mere fact of having taken an action as being the basis for the formation of a subsequent cognition.

The second example “when someone buys a solid state amplifier and the result is a degradation in the sound” is a much better example of cognitive dissonance assuming that the buyer of the amplifier actually believes his “explanation … offered for the purchase” and in no way regrets his purchase even though the sound has been degraded.

I regret everything...