8- Research Paradigm

Question 1

What 4 main research paradigms are used in dissonance research?

Answer 1

Free-choice, belief-disconfirmation, effort-justification, induced compliance

Question 2

When is dissonance in the free-choice paradigm?

Answer 2

After a decision is made

Question 3

What is dissonance in the belief-disconfirmation paradigm?

Answer 3

Consequences of being exposed to info contradicting prior beliefs

Question 4

When do people experience dissonance in the effort-justification paradigm?

Answer 4

Dissonance experienced from effects of the effort to attain something

Question 5

Why do we feel dissonance according to the induced compliance paradigm?

Answer 5

When engaging in behaviours inconsistent with attitudes

Question 6

What is the free-choice paradigm based off of?

Answer 6

Dissonance is caused by a choice of 1 or 2 alternatives close in desirability and people are motivated to re-evaluate alternatives to reduce it

Question 7

What is the effect of alternatives being closer in the free-choice paradigm?

Answer 7

Greater dissonance and attempts to reduce it

Question 8

2 factors that post-decisional dissonance is due to (free-choice paradigm)

Answer 8

Rejected alternative + aspects that the chosen alternative doesn’t have: rejected positives of this
Chosen alternative - aspects that the rejected alternative doesn’t have: committed to negatives of this

Question 9

What is post-decision re-consideration? (Free-choice paradigm)

Answer 9

Chosen alternative is viewed as more desirable post-decision and the unchosen alternative is viewed as less desirable

Question 10

Who investigated the free-choice paradigm?

Answer 10

Brehm, 1956

Question 11

What were Brehm’s results to support the free-choice paradigm?

Answer 11

People in the high dissonance condition spread items wider in terms of desirability, and they were found as more likely to increase the positives and decrease the negatives post-decision

Question 12

What is involved in the belief-disconfirmation paradigm?

Answer 12

Providing disconfirming info to people that hold a certain belief

Question 13

How does dissonance result according to the belief-disconfirmation paradigm?

Answer 13

From disconfirmation of someone’s beliefs

Question 14

2 ways the belief-disconfirmation paradigm says dissonance may be reduced

Answer 14

1. By adding consonant cognitions- may intensify the belief
2. By changing beliefs in group members who were alone

Question 15

When did Harmon-Jones et al find more cognitive dissonance?

Answer 15

For high Trump supporters who read an article about him misconducting himself

Question 16

How did high Trump supporters cope with the dissonance they felt?

Answer 16

By increasing likelihood of sharing negative info about Hilary Clinton- emphasising wrongdoings of opponents

Question 17

How did Batson investigate the belief-disconfirmation paradigm?

Answer 17

Participants who believed in Jesus’ divinity vs those who did not, and exposed them to an article stating that Jesus is a hoax

Question 18

What did Batson find?

Answer 18

Personal beliefs intensified when evidence was seen disconfirming beliefs

Question 19

What is the observation supporting the effort-justification paradigm?

Answer 19

People who go through effort to achieve something will value it more highly than those who attain it without effort

Question 20

What do we tend to do if an outcome is not as rewarding as expected (effort-justification paradigm)?

Answer 20

Tend to overvalue the reward

Question 21

What was Aronson and Mills’ hypothesis?

Answer 21

People who undergo an unpleasant initiation to join a group will like it more than those who didn’t go through a severe initiation

Question 22

What was the rationale for Aronson and Mills’ hypothesis?

Answer 22

A group always has some negatives- we devalue these negative aspects when we put a lot of effort into joining a group

Question 23

What 3 conditions were in Aronson and Mills’ study?

Answer 23

Severe initiation condition: read aloud embarrassing stories
Mild initiation condition: read aloud not very embarrassing stories
Control condition: no reading

Question 24

After the initiation task, what did Aronson and Mills’ participants do?

Answer 24

Listened to a recorded group discussion designed to be uninteresting

Question 25

What was the purpose of Aronson and Mills’ participants listening to a recording?

Answer 25

To increase the dissonance felt in the severe condition

Question 26

What was measured in Aronson and Mills’ study?

Answer 26

Evaluative ratings of the discussion and the participants

Question 27

What were the results of Aronson and Mills’ study?

Answer 27

Participants who experienced an unpleasant initiation to join the group increased their liking for the group

Question 28

What was the explanation for Aronson and Mills’ results?

Answer 28

Negative cognitions about boring group discussion were dissonant with the cognition about painful experience to join the group

Question 29

2 drives the reduce dissonance (effort justification paradigm)

Answer 29

Denial of initiation severity –> to unpleasant to be denied
Change attitude: exaggerate attractiveness of the group –> addition of consonant cognition

Question 30

What did Axsom and Cooper investigate?

Answer 30

Effort justification in a weight loss program

Question 31

What did participants do in Axsom and Cooper’s study?

Answer 31

Participants completed tasks (high effortful, low effortful, no task) unrelated to weight loss program

Question 32

What were the results of Axsom and Cooper’s study?

Answer 32

High effort condition showed increased weight loss

Question 33

What is effort-discounting?

Answer 33

More effort required to obtain a reward means a lower value of the reward

Question 34

How did Botvinick et al study effort-discounting?

Answer 34

An fMRI study

Question 35

What did Botvinick et al find and what did this suggest?

Answer 35

Less activity in the nucleus accumbens in a high effort condition- suggesting lower reward value

Question 36

What is the main idea of the induced-compliance paradigm?

Answer 36

Effects of engaging in behaviors inconsistent to attitudes show an attitude change is important to reduce dissonance

Question 37

What is the idea of Festinger and Carlsmith’s negative incentive effect?

Answer 37

There is a negative relationship between the amount of an incentive received and the amount of attitude change toward a counter-attitudinal behaviour