Methods Of Attitude Change: Cognitive Dissonance

Question 1

What is cognitive dissonance?

Answer 1

Changing one component of attitude (triadic model) causes psychological discord/conflict

• a person will become uncertain and emotionally unsettled-‘in two minds’
• conflict between 2 ideas

Question 2

Why is it a good way of changing a negative attitude?

Answer 2

The person is motivated to restore balance between the attitude components
-motivation to recreate harmony is called drive for consonance (opposite to dissonance)