"Cognitive dissonance is a psychological state that describes the uncomfortable feeling when a person begins to understand that something the person believes to be true is, in fact, not true. Similar to ambivalence, the term cognitive dissonance describes conflicting thoughts or beliefs (cognitions) that occur at the same time, or when engaged in behaviors that conflict with one's beliefs. In academic literature, the term refers to attempts to reduce the discomfort of conflicting thoughts by performing actions that are opposite to one's beliefs.
In simple terms, it can be the filtering of information that conflicts with what one already believes, in an effort to ignore that information and reinforce one's beliefs. In detailed terms, it is the perception of incompatibility between two cognitions, where "cognition" is defined as any element of knowledge, including attitude, emotion, belief, or behavior. The theory of cognitive dissonance states that contradicting cognitions serve as a driving force that compels the mind to acquire or invent new thoughts or beliefs, or to modify existing beliefs, so as to reduce the amount of dissonance (conflict) between cognitions. Experiments have attempted to quantify this hypothetical drive. Some of these have examined how beliefs often change to match behavior when beliefs and behavior are in conflict."
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2 comments:
I love your site! Thank you for all of your help (I posted the agnostic question) and I apologize for not leaving a comment with my own name. I do not feel safe enough to do that yet but hopefully one day! I just wanted to say thank you!
How sad is it the people are afraid to use their name out of fear of the church and how fellow Mormons will react. That is a sobering look into the Mormon culture. It has become ever clear to me that there is not freedom to express thoughts in the church unless they align with current teachings. In fact, many have been subjected to disciplinary counsels for raising legitimate questions and concerns. I use the name Soy Yo which is Spanish for “I am me” but I do not hide my name on my blog. I admire the Terrys for doing the same. Hopefully one day, all will be able to do alike without fear or consequence.
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