Cognitive dissonance

Discomfort associated with consequential inconsistency among cognitions or behavior.

Definition

Cognitive dissonance is psychological discomfort associated with inconsistency among relevant beliefs, attitudes, or behavior.

How to understand it

Dissonance theory links such inconsistency with pressure to reduce discomfort. A person might change behavior, revise an attitude, or reinterpret what happened. The theory does not imply that every inconsistency is noticed, equally uncomfortable, or resolved through the same route, and dissonance is not a synonym for disagreement.

To apply the idea carefully, identify the two relevant commitments or actions and why their relationship matters to the person. A contradictory statement alone is weak evidence for an experienced state. The person’s account and subsequent behavior can help test an interpretation, but should not be read as a transparent window into motives.

Evidence: (Spielman et al., 2020)

Credit on a shared project

Teaching scenario

Imagine a student who strongly values giving fair credit but accepts an award for a project without mentioning a teammate’s major contribution. When the omission is raised, the student feels uneasy. They could publicly correct the credit or rationalize the omission by minimizing the teammate’s role. Either is a possible way to reduce inconsistency in this invented scenario. The example does not establish which response is likely or label the student’s whole character. The key relation is between their stated commitment and their own consequential action.

Constructed for learning. This scenario is not a report of an empirical finding or a diagnosis.

Common confusion: Ordinary disagreement

Disagreement may occur between people without internal discomfort; dissonance concerns an inconsistency relevant to one person’s cognitions or behavior.

Evidence: (Spielman et al., 2020)

Limits of the concept

Inconsistent behavior alone does not demonstrate experienced dissonance.
Reducing discomfort need not improve reasoning or correct the original action.

Evidence: (Spielman et al., 2020)

Textbook connection

Direct coveragePsychology 2e: 12.3 Attitudes and Persuasion

The subsection explicitly discusses this concept.

Supplementary concepts may extend beyond this section. The source notes below identify the evidence for those details.

Related concepts

Check understanding · Inspect how psychological evidence is built

Sources and inspection notes

Checked October 21, 2026. An inspection date is not a source publication date. Definitions and scenarios on this page are original teaching explanations.

Spielman, R. M., Jenkins, W. J., & Lovett, M. D. (2020). Psychology 2e. OpenStax. https://openstax.org/books/psychology-2e/pages/12-3-attitudes-and-persuasionCourse textbook subsection
Title, URL, and relevant subsection text inspected on 21 October 2026. Used for concept checking and course navigation; no textbook exercises or illustrations reproduced.