Communication Theory Exam 1 Chapter 17

Question 1

Dissonance

Answer 1

Discord between behavior and belief

Question 2

Cognitive Dissonance

Answer 2

distressing mental state caused by inconsistency between a person’s two beliefs or a belief and an action

Question 3

Festinger’s 3 mental mechanisms people use to ensure their actions and attitudes are in harmony

Answer 3

1. Selective exposure prevents dissonance
2. Postdecision dissonance creates a need for reassurance
3. Minimal justification for action induces a shift in attitude

Question 4

Selective Exposure

Answer 4

tendency to avoid information that would create cognitive dissonance because it is incompatible with current beliefs

Question 5

Postdecision dissonance

Answer 5

strong doubts experienced after making a close-call, important decision that is difficult to reverse

Question 6

Minimal justification hypotheses

Answer 6

claim that best way to stimulate an attitude change in others is to offer just enough incentive to elicit counterattitudinal behavior

Question 7

Compliance

Answer 7

public conformity to another’s expectation without necessarily having a private conviction that matches the behavior

Question 8

Counterattitudinal advocacy

Answer 8

publicly urging others to believe or do something that is opposed to what the advocate actually believes

Question 9

Dissonance Thermometer

Answer 9

hypothetical, reliable gauge of the dissonance a person feels as result of inconsistency

Question 10

3 State of the Art Revisions

Answer 10

1. Self-Consistency
2. Personal Responsibility for Bad Outcomes
3. Self-Affirmation to Dissipate Dissonance

Question 11

Self-Perception Theory

Answer 11

claim that we determine our attitudes the same way that outside observers do