What is cognitive dissonance?

People tend to seek consistency in their beliefs and perceptions. So what happens when one of our beliefs conflicts with another previously held belief? The term cognitive dissonance is used to describe the feeling of discomfort that results from holding two conflicting beliefs. When there is a discrepancy between beliefs and behaviors, something must change in order to eliminate or reduce the dissonance.

Examples of Cognitive Dissonance

Cognitive dissonance can occur in many areas of life, but it is particularly evident in situations where an individual's behavior conflicts with beliefs that are integral to his or her self-identity. For example, consider a situation in which a woman who values financial security is in a relationship with a man who is financially irresponsible.

The conflict:

1. It is important for her to be financially secure.
2. She is dating a man who is financially unstable.

mcognitiv dissonance is descriped by Spencer & Myers (2006) as a "mental state that people feel when they find themselves doing things that don't fit with what they know, or having opinions that do not fit with other opinions they hold"

in marketing, for example,  it is defind as a post- purchase discomfort feeling. Many times consumers buy things as a result of certain motives, but after purchacing these products the start thinking about their decision and if it is the best or not.

Very interesting, thank You!

Cognitive dissonance (noun)

PSYCHOLOGY /the state of having inconsistent thoughts, beliefs, or attitudes, especially as relating to behavioural decisions and attitude change. In other words cognitive dissonance is psychological conflict resulting from incongruous beliefs and attitudes held simultaneously.

Leon Festinger's theory of cognitive dissonance focuses on how humans strive for internal consistency. An individual who experiences inconsistency (dissonance) tends to become psychologically uncomfortable, and is motivated to try to reduce this dissonance — as well as actively avoid situations and information likely to increase it.

• A classic illustration of cognitive dissonance is expressed in the fable "The Fox and the Grapes" by Aesop. In the story, a fox sees some high-hanging grapes and wishes to eat them. When the fox is unable to think of a way to reach them, he decides that the grapes are probably not worth eating, with the justification the grapes probably are not ripe or that they are sour (hence the common phrase "sour grapes"). The moral that accompanies the story is "Any fool can despise what he cannot get". This example follows a pattern: one desires something, finds it unattainable, and reduces one's dissonance by criticizing it. Jon Elster calls this pattern "adaptive preference formation".

Cognitive dissonance theory is founded on the assumption that individuals seek consistency between their expectations and their reality. Because of this, people engage in a process called dissonance reduction to bring their cognitions and actions in line with one another. This creation of uniformity allows for a lessening of psychological tension and distress. According to Festinger, dissonance reduction can be achieved in four ways. In an example case where a person has adopted the attitude that they will no longer eat high fat food, but eats a high-fat doughnut, the four methods of reduction are:

1. Change behavior or cognition ("I will not eat any more of this doughnut")

2. Justify behavior or cognition by changing the conflicting cognition ("I'm allowed to cheat every once in a while")

3. Justify behavior or cognition by adding new cognitions ("I'll spend extra minutes at the gym to work this off")

4. Ignore or deny any information that conflicts with existing beliefs ("This doughnut is not high in fat")

Relationship between cognitions Individuals can adjust their attitudes or actions in various ways. Adjustments result in one of three relationships between two cognitions or between a cognition and a behavior.

Consonant relationship: Two cognitions/actions that are consistent with one another (e.g., not wanting to get intoxicated while out, then ordering water instead of alcohol)

Irrelevant relationship: Two cognitions/actions that are unrelated to one another (e.g., not wanting to get intoxicated while out, then tying your shoes)

Dissonant relationship: Two cognitions/actions that are inconsistent with one another (e.g., not wanting to get intoxicated while out, then consuming a large quantity of alcohol)

Cognitive Dissonance and Consumer behavior.

Existing literature suggests that three main conditions exist for arousal of dissonance in purchases: the decision involved in the purchase must be important, such as involvement of a lot of money or psychological cost and be personally relevant to the consumer, the consumer has freedom in selecting among the alternatives, and finally, the decision involvement must be irreversible.

Lindsay Mallikin’s research shows that when consumers experience an unexpected price encounter, they adopt three methods to reduce dissonance:employ a strategy of constant information, change in attitude, or they may engage in trivialization.

Consumers employ the strategy of constant information by engaging in bias and searching for information that supports their prior beliefs. Consumers might search for information about other retailers and substitute products consistent with their belief states. Alternatively, consumers may show change in attitude such as reevaluating price in relation to external reference prices or associating high or low prices with quality. Lastly, trivialization may occur and the importance of the elements of the dissonant relationship is reduced; consumers tend to trivialize importance of money, and thus of shopping around, saving, and receiving a better deal.

Cognitive dissonance is also useful to explain and manage post-purchase concerns. A consumer who feels an alternate purchase would have been better will likely not buy the product again. To counter this, marketers have to convince buyers constantly that the product satisfies their need and thereby helps reduce their cognitive dissonance, ensuring repurchase of the same brand in the future. An example of post-purchase dissonance resolution used in a client relation is a salesperson congratulating his buyer on "having made the right choice".

At times cognitive dissonance is induced, rather than resolved, to market products. The Hallmark Cards tag line "When you care enough to send the very best" is an example of a marketing strategy that creates guilt in the buyer if he or she goes for a less expensive card. Such aggressive marketing ensures that the recipient also is aware that the product has a premium price. This encourages the consumer to buy the expensive cards on special occasions.