心理学与生活-第108节

按键盘上方向键 ← 或 → 可快速上下翻页，按键盘上的 Enter 键可回到本书目录页，按键盘上方向键 ↑ 可回到本页顶部！
————未阅读完？加入书签已便下次继续阅读！


implications。　Do　students　believe　that　people’s　willingness　to　obey　an　authority　figure　in　
Milgram’s　studies　is　linked　to　why　national　populations　will　sometimes　willingly　follow　
tyrants　like　Adolf　Hitler？　Are　the　factors　that　led　to　Milgram’s　results　the　same　ones　that　lead　
to　phenomena　such　as　groupthink　and　risky　shift？　Does　the　fact　that　most　Americans　believe　
an　Adolf　Hitler　could　never　do　here　what　he　did　in　Germany　actually　make　us　more　
vulnerable　to　a　Hitler…type　if　he　should　ever　e　along？　What　are　some　ways　that　people　
might　inoculate　themselves　from　these　effects？　
An　elderly　man　suffered　a　severe　viral　infection。　Manifestations　of　the　infection　included　
large　blisters　on　his　back；　severe　muscle　and　joint　pain；　and　a　conitant　depressive　
episode。　After　three　months；　the　man　recovered　pletely。　During　his　final　visit　to　his　
physician；　as　he　was　being　given　a　clean　bill　of　health；　the　physician　remarked　that　his　
recovery　was　“remarkable　for　a　man　your　age。”　The　physician　went　on　to　say　that　because　of　
the　severity　of　the　virus；　“some　people　just　never　get　over　the　symptoms。”　Before　this　visit；　
the　man　had　been　free　of　pain；　his　depression　was　lifting；　and　he　was　gradually　resuming　his　
usual　level　of　activity。　Within　two　weeks；　the　man　slipped　back　into　his　sick…role　behavior　of　
sitting　in　his　chair　all　day　in　front　of　the　television。　He　began　telling　everyone　he　met　how　ill　
he　was；　and　became　convinced　that　he　would　“never　get　any　better。”　Discuss　with　the　class　
the　psychological　mechanisms　at　work　with　this　man’s　“illness”　and　the　ments　made　by　
his　physician　on　that　last　visit。　

4。　What　would　be　the　consequences　of　a　race　of　people　who　were　not　“social　animals；”　who　
were　shy　and　fearful　of　all　people　and　preferred　to　be　in　isolation？　
5。　Should　parents　of　seventh　and　eighth　graders　try　to　help　their　children　resist　the　norms　of　a　
peer…group　drug　culture？　If　so；　how？　What　other　adolescent；　and　adult；　behaviors　are　
subject　to　peer　influence？　Is　this　influence　harmful　or　not？　6。　What　activities　would　
you　arrange　for　your　children　if　you　wanted　them　to　be　very　social；　outgoing　extroverts；　or　
the　opposite；　social　introverts？　
6。　Ask　the　class　how　they　might　use　the　cognitive　dissonance　principle　that　“changing　behavior　
changes　attitudes”　to　design　programs　for：　
。　Increasing　a　person’s　low　self…esteem　
。　Modifying　a　deprecatory　attitude　toward　student　protesters　
。　Decreasing　a　racial　prejudice　in　schoolchildren　
Now　reverse　the　process　and　design　new　programs　using　the　principle　that　“changing　
attitudes　changes　behaviors”　for　the　same　problems。　Which　principle　do　you　think　the　class　
will　be　more　successful　using？　Why？　

344　


CHAPTER　17：　SOCIAL　PROCESSES　AND　RELATIONSHIPS　

SUPPLEMENTAL　LECTURE　MATERIAL　

Cognitive　Dissonance　

A　high　school　girl　believed　the　use　of　drugs　to　be　physically　harmful　and　morally　wrong。　She　
was　invited　to　a　party　given　by　a　group　from　her　class　that　she　admired。　Other　people　at　the　
party　were　using　cocaine　and　drinking　wine　and；　because　she　wanted　to　be　accepted　by　the　
group；　she　decided　she　should　do　what　the　others　were　doing。　The　next　day　she　was　tense　and　
unfortable　because　she　had　done　something　that　she　believed　to　be　wrong。　She　was　suffering　
from　cognitive　dissonance。　

The　theory　of　cognitive　dissonance　was　proposed　in　the　1950s　by　psychologist　Leon　Festinger。　It　
is　a　very　simple　theory；　but　one　applicable　to　an　enormous　range　of　situations。　Cognitive　
dissonance　is　defined　as　a　state　of　tension　that　exists　when　two　（or　more）　cognitions　are　
psychologically　inconsistent；　with　that　inconsistency　creating　tension。　Festinger　considered　
tension　motivating　because　when　tension　occurs；　there　is　a　motive　to　reduce　or　eliminate　it。　
“Cognition”　is　a　broad　term　that　includes　perception；　reasoning；　beliefs；　values；　and　attitudes…any　
form　of　knowledge　or　knowing。　“Psychologically　inconsistent”　means　that　the　individual　
possessing　the　cognitions　perceives　them　to　be　inpatible　or　in　conflict。　This　is　the　Achilles　
heel　of　the　theory；　because　psychological　inconsistency　is　subjective；　it　cannot　be　directly　
observed　and　measured。　

Dissonance　sometimes　occurs　after　making　a　decision　that　is　irrevocable；　or　that　would　be　very　
difficult　to　reverse。　Suppose　a　high　school　senior　has　narrowed　his　choice　of　colleges　to　two；　both　
equally　attractive。　He　has　to　make　a　decision　and　choose　one　of　the　schools。　When　he　chooses　
one；　he　has　to　give　up　the　things　he　likes　about　the　other。　What　are　the　dissonant　cognitions？　I　
chose　school　A；　therefore　I　have　to　give　up　all　things　I　liked　about　school　B。　What　does　he　do　to　
reduce　the　dissonance？　He　accentuates　the　positive　aspects　of　school　A　and　the　negative　aspects　
of　school　B。　He　may　decide　that　the　things　he　liked　about　school　B　are　not　really　important。　

Two　students　have　identical　new　cars。　One　student’s　car　was　a　gift　from　her　parents　while　the　
other　student　had　saved　for　several　years　to　buy　her　car；　doing　without　things　she　would　like　to　
have　in　order　to　accumulate　the　money　for　the　car。　A　well…known　automotive　magazine　assigns　
the　car　its　“lemon　of　the　year　award；”　claiming　that　the　car　is　unsafe　and　undependable；　and　that　
it　is　poorly　engineered　and　designed。　Which　student　is　likely　to　feel　more　unfortable　about　
the　magazine’s　negative　evaluation　of　the　car？　Obviously；　the　student　who　had　to　save　money　to　
buy　it。　What　are　her　dissonant　cognitions？　“I　spent　my　savings　for　this　car。　The　car　is　a　lemon。”　
What　can　she　do　to　reduce　the　dissonance？　She　can　discredit　the　magazine　and　the　database　that　
was　used　for　the　evaluation。　She　can　also　remind　herself　of　the　things　she　likes　about　the　car。　

For　most　of　us；　there　are　things　we　would　like　to　have　that　we　cannot。　When　the　desire　for　
something”　is　very　important　to　us；　we　may　have　dissonant　cognitions　that　make　us　tense　and　
unhappy。　For　example；　suppose　you　are　in　love　with　a　person　who　does　not　love　you。　What　are　
the　dissonant　cognitions？　I　would　like　to　have　a　serious　relationship　with　Lucy。　Lucy　doesn’t　
love　me。”　What　do　people　do　to　reduce　the　dissonance　in　this　type　of　situation？　One　method　is　
the　“sour　grapes”　approach。　“Lucy　isn’t　so　great　after　all。　She　is　bowlegged　and　chews　with　her　
mouth　open。”　The　expensive　sweater　is　not　practical　and　the　sports　car　that　is　so　appealing　is　the　
type　of　car　driven　by　people　who　are　too　status…conscious。　The　group　that　did　not　ask　you　to　join　
is　posed　of　snobs　that　you　would　not　want　to　associate　with　anyway。　

Jenny　and　Jack　are　both　in　danger　of　failing　a　course。　The　instructor　gives　a　take…home　exam　that　
students　must　sign；　declaring　that　they　did　not　receive　help　from　another　person。　Both　Jenny　and　
Jack　have　friends　who　took　the　course　and　made　good　grades；　and　who　could　help　them；　and　

345　


PSYCHOLOGY　AND　LIFE　

both　feel　that　cheating　is　wrong。　Jenny　gives　in　to　temptation　and　gets　help　from　her　friend；　gets　a　
good　grade　on　the　final；　passes　the　course；　but　now　she　suffers　from　cognitive　dissonance。　What　
are　Jenny’s　dissonant　cognitions？　“I　think　it　is　wrong　to　cheat。　I　cheated。”　How　will　she　reduce　
the　dissonance？　She　will　probably　not　feel　as　strongly　about　cheating。　She　may　also　belittle　the　
amount　of　help　she　got　from　the　friend；　telling　herself　that　she　did　most　of　the　work；　and　that　she　
would　have　passed　the　course　without　the　help　of　the　friend。　

Jack　did　not　succumb　to　the　temptation　of　getting　his　friend　to　help　him。　He　made　a　poor　grade　
on　the　final　and　failed　the　course。　He　may　have　some　dissonance；　too。　What　are　Jack’s　dissonant　
cognitions？　“If　I　had　cheated　I　would　have　passed　the　course。　I　didn’t　cheat。”　What　will　he　do　to　
reduce　his　dissonance？　Jack　is　likely　to　bee　more　strongly　opposed　to　cheating　than　before。　
He　may　feel　badly　about　failing；　but　will　feel　good　about　his　integrity　and　strength　of　his　
convictions。　

These　next　applications　are　similar　to　dissonance　due　to　the　investment　of　time；　money；　or　effort；　
but　in　these　cases；　the　person　gets　little　or　nothing　in　exchange　for　the　investment。　If　we　give　
money　to　a　charity；　we　convince　ourselves　that　it　is　a　worthy　cause。　If　we　work　for　a　political　
candidate；　we　convince　ourselves　that　the　candidate　is　a　good　and　petent　person。　If　we　paint　
our　room；　we　convince　ourselves　that　we　have　made　a　big　improvement。　If　we　gave　money　to　a　
charity　we　didn’t　trust；　worked　for　a　candidate　who　is　a　scoundrel；　or　made　the　room　dingy　by　
painting　it；　our　time；　money；　or　effort　would　have　been　wasted；　and　our　self…esteem　would　suffer　
because　we　did　something　stupid；　so　we　seek　to　justify　our　behavior　by　convincing　ourselves　that　
our　time；　money；　or　effort　served　a　good　cause。　

In　1978；　nine　hundred　members　of　the　People’s　Temple　in　Guyana　fed　a　poisonous　drink　to　their　
children；　drank　it　themselves；　and　lay　down　on　the　ground　to　die。　People　were　attracted　to　the　
Temple’s　charismatic　leader；　Jun　Jones；　and　were　initially　drawn　to　his　meetings　in　San　Francisco　
by　Jones’　emotional　message　of　love　and　hope。　Small　demands　were　made　on　new　members；　like　
giving　one　per