Leon Festinger’s Cognitive Dissonance Theory, demonstrated through the famous “boring task” experiment in 1959, is a cornerstone in social psychology. Festinger and Carlsmith conducted this experiment to explore the relationships between attitudes, behaviours, and cognitive dissonance. Cognitive dissonance refers to the uncomfortable tension that comes from holding two conflicting thoughts in the mind at the same time, or from engaging in behaviour that contradicts one’s beliefs.
In the experiment, participants were asked to perform an exceedingly dull task for an hour. Afterwards, they were divided into two groups: one was paid $1 (a small reward) to tell the next participant that the task was enjoyable, while the other group was paid $20 (a significant reward) for the same deception. When later asked to evaluate the task, the $1 group rated it as more enjoyable than the $20 group. Festinger theorized that the $1 group experienced higher cognitive dissonance because the small reward couldn’t justify lying; to resolve this dissonance, they altered their attitudes toward the task, convincing themselves it wasn’t so dull after all. Conversely, the $20 group had an external justification for their lie, experiencing less dissonance and therefore no need to change their attitudes about the task.
This experiment underscored the power of cognitive dissonance in driving attitude change, suggesting that when external justification for an action is insufficient, internal justification (changing one’s attitude or belief) is sought to resolve the dissonance. Festinger’s work laid the groundwork for understanding how and why people change their attitudes in various contexts, from consumer behaviour to political beliefs.
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