Cognitive Dissonance: Affecting Party Orientation and Selective Recall of Political Information

Cognitive dissonance theory posits that inconsistencies between attitudes and behaviors cause an uncomfortable arousal state, and people are motivated to reduce this discomfort by changing attitudes or behaviors to increase consistency. This principle applies to research on political affiliation. Due to dissonance processes, individuals focus less on political information that opposes their views and pay greater attention when it is congruent with their views. This study adds to this research by examining whether political orientation causes a similar pattern of selective attention bias during the recall stage. Participants (117) studied a political article on a social issue representing a viewpoint that was favorable to Democrats. Next, participants recalled as much information as possible by typing the information in a textbox. Using a sliding scale, they also rated how they felt about the article in terms of arousal and affect, and indicated whether the article was neutral, positive, or negative. Democrats were predicted to recall more positive information and more positive affect after reading the article than Republicans. Surprisingly, more Republicans, rather than Democrats, recalled more positive information about the article. Finally, those who scored more conservatively on the political slider also reported more positive affect toward the article. Although contrary to the study hypotheses, these results have implications for our current understanding of selective attention in a political context by showing the bias also occurs at the recall stage. It takes a special effort to be able to think outside the bubble. The purpose of this study is to find what it takes to pop the bubble and change the mindset of political engaged people. Keywords: cognitive dissonance, attentional bias, political orientation, selective recall

The aftermath of a brand transgression: the role of brand forgiveness and brand evangelism

Purpose This study aims to examine how brand transgression (BT) affects brand relationship quality (BRQ). Brand forgiveness (BF) and brand evangelism (BE) are tested as mediators between BT and BRQ. This study advances knowledge in consumer behavior by showing how consumers offer to deal with their relationships with brands through BE and BF. This provides relevant information to managers to seek strategies to obtain forgiveness from consumers in case the unfortunate happens. Not only must they seek to obtain forgiveness but also seek ways to ensure BE of their brands. These act as buffers for the brands in case a transgression happens. Design/methodology/approach Using a survey approach, this study tests whether forgiveness mediated the relationship between BT and BRQ. Also, whether BE mediated the relationship between BT and BRQ was examined. The test was conducted using PROCESS bootstrapping method (Model 4 of Hayes [2018]). Findings Consistent with the predictions, this study finds that, following a BT, consumers engage in BE and BF to maintain the relationship they have already established with their brands. Originality/value This study extends the existing literature by showing that after a BT, response from consumers may take different forms. The consumer’s response or the relationship with the brand may be affected by whether the consumer forgives the brand or evangelizes about the brand. Based on the cognitive dissonance theory, the results of this study imply that, forgiveness and BE act as important mechanisms in understanding consumer-brand relationships after brands act unacceptably. Further, this study contributes to the social media brand management literature by investigating a real-world BT case of social media.

When election expectations fail: Polarized perceptions of election legitimacy increase with accumulating evidence of election outcomes and with polarized media

The present study, conducted immediately after the 2020 presidential election in the United States, examined whether Democrats’ and Republicans’ polarized assessments of election legitimacy increased over time. In a naturalistic survey experiment, people (N = 1,236) were randomly surveyed either during the week following Election Day, with votes cast but the outcome unknown, or during the following week, after President Joseph Biden was widely declared the winner. The design unconfounded the election outcome announcement from the vote itself, allowing more precise testing of predictions derived from cognitive dissonance theory. As predicted, perceived election legitimacy increased among Democrats, from the first to the second week following Election Day, as their expected Biden win was confirmed, whereas perceived election legitimacy decreased among Republicans as their expected President Trump win was disconfirmed. From the first to the second week following Election Day, Republicans reported stronger negative emotions and weaker positive emotions while Democrats reported stronger positive emotions and weaker negative emotions. The polarized perceptions of election legitimacy were correlated with the tendencies to trust and consume polarized media. Consumption of Fox News was associated with lowered perceptions of election legitimacy over time whereas consumption of other outlets was associated with higher perceptions of election legitimacy over time. Discussion centers on the role of the media in the experience of cognitive dissonance and the implications of polarized perceptions of election legitimacy for psychology, political science, and the future of democratic society.

Examining the Impact of eWOM-Triggered Customer-to-Customer Interactions on Travelers’ Repurchase and Social Media Engagement

Electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) communication on social media has revolutionized how travelers search for and share information and how they interact with one another digitally. This research examines the effects of eWOM-triggered customer-to-customer (C2C) interactions on travelers’ post-eWOM behaviors (i.e., repurchase and customer engagement) in a cross-cultural context. Drawing upon cognitive dissonance theory, a scenario-based experiment was conducted using a sample of 461 African tourists with recent intracontinental travel experience. Our findings suggest that a customer’s repurchase intention and engagement in social media C2C interactions are significantly influenced when their eWOM is challenged by other customers. Compared with individualistic cultures, such a phenomenon is more effective in collectivistic cultures, particularly when a customer shares negative eWOM. Customers in collectivistic cultures are more likely to appreciate consensus with other customers, and they tend to expend more effort toward solving dissonance. The theoretical and managerial implications of these findings are discussed.

The psychophysiological correlates of cognitive dissonance

This preregistered study uses a combination of physiological measures to explore both the activation and reduction components of cognitive dissonance theory. More precisely, we use skin conductance to identify dissonance arousal, a short-term affective response to counter-attitudinal stimuli, and then use heart rate variability to measure dissonance reduction, which reflects longer-term patterns of emotional regulation and information processing. Our preliminary tests find weak evidence of dissonance arousal and no evidence of dissonance reduction using this physiological approach. We consequently reconsider (albeit optimistically) the use of physiology in future work on cognitive dissonance. We also discuss the implications of our findings for selective exposure and motivated reasoning.

Exploration of dissonance segments among fashion apparel consumers: Evidence from a developing nation

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the existence and profile consumer segments based on dissonance in Indian apparel fashion retail market.Design/methodology/approachThis study is based on cognitive dissonance theory (CDT) and analyses data using cluster and discriminant analysis on a sample (n = 354) from India.FindingsThe findings revealed three dissonance segments among consumers based on the intensity of dissonance experienced. This study also validated the clusters and profiled each segment. In doing so, the three clusters exhibited unique differences with respect to purchase and socio-demographic characteristics. Moreover, high dissonance segments were found to inversely impact customer’s satisfaction, loyalty and overall perceived value and positively impact tendency to switch.Practical implicationsUnderstanding the existence of cognitive dissonance (CD) patterns among consumers is critical for fashion apparel retailers. This paper offers unique insights into the specialties of each dissonance segment that assists the marketers to frame appropriate strategies to target them.Originality/valueThis paper advances knowledge on consumer behavior by highlighting the significance of CD.

Dissonance and Attitude Change

Cognitive dissonance theory (CDT) was first introduced by Leon Festinger. Cognitive dissonance is the process by which people detect an inconsistency between cognitions, such as attitudes, beliefs, and behavior. When individuals become aware of an inconsistency between cognitions, they experience a state of psychological discomfort that motivates them to restore consistency. Factors such as the importance of the cognitions and the magnitude of the discomfort play a role in determining how people restore consistency. Festinger described three primary ways people can reduce dissonance: change a cognition; add new cognitions; or change the importance of the inconsistent cognitions. Many early studies showed that when people are unable to change their behavior, they will change their attitudes to be more in line with the inconsistent behavior. Over the years, CDT has undergone many challenges and revisions. Some revisions focus on the importance of cognitions about the self in the processes by which dissonance motivates attitude change. Others focused on the consequences of the behavior and various cognitive mechanisms that underlie the experience of dissonance. In the early 21st century, research has examined the underlying motivation for dissonance-induced attitude and behavior change, and how people prefer to reduce dissonance once it is present. And, as with the entire field of social psychology, dissonance researchers are also raising concerns about the replicability of classic dissonance effects and focusing their attention on the need to improve the methods the field uses to test predictions going forward.

Employer branding voor bedrijven met een negatief productimago

SUMMARY The benefits of employer branding for the attraction and retention of personnel have been repeatedly confirmed in the HR literature. However, most studies focus on solely one perspective on employer branding as well as the ‘ideal’ situation: having a positive employer brand in combination with positive product image. This study aims to provide a holistic understanding of the role of employer branding within organizations that suffer from a generally negative product image. We conducted a case study within the tobacco industry that includes interviews on three perspectives on employer branding: the external (N=21), internal (N=8), and organizational perspective (N=3). The key findings are aligned with cognitive dissonance theory and the theory of reasoned action. The employer brand may help organizations that suffer from a negative product image to address cognitive dissonance of (potential) employees as well as the influence of social norms by actively promoting attractive employment attributes (e.g., high salary, job rotation, innovation). Alignment between the external and internal employer brand, boosting the organization’s credibility, could also be of help. Taking such approach, employer branding may allow to convince (potential) employees to become or remain employed at the organization – despite the generally negative image of their products.

Positionality of refugee business support and hospitality building under cognitive dissonance theory: an enterprising route of refugee entrepreneurship

Purpose For the developed economies in Europe, to which refugees move, and as refugees’ enterprising expectations evolve, emerging cognitive factors have become closely intertwined with their post-arrival encounters. However, the link between refugees’ social cognition and entrepreneurship commitment tends to be overlooked. This paper aims to join the international debates regarding cognitions of refugee entrepreneurship and explain the bewildering effects of refugees’ social cognitive dissonance on refugee business support. Design/methodology/approach This paper reviews the extant knowledge of refugee entrepreneurship and refugee business support. It synthesizes the literature on cognitive dissonance, multiple embeddedness and hospitality to inform a conceptual model and explain the ramifications of refugees’ entrepreneurial cognition on refugee business support and how public attitudes in the destination transform accordingly. Findings This paper illustrates the prevalent imbalance between the provision of support and refugees’ anticipations in developed economies. A conceptual toolkit is framed to disclose the succeeding influence of cognitive dissonance on the performances of refugee business support. This framework indicates that the cognitive dissonance could elicit heterogeneous aftermath of refugee business support service, resulting in a deteriorated/ameliorated hospitality context. Originality/value This conceptual toolkit unfolds cognitive ingredients in the refugee entrepreneurship journey, providing a framework for understanding refugee business support and the formation of hospitality under cognitive dissonance. Practically, it is conducive to policymakers nurturing rational refugee anticipation, enacting inclusive business support and enhancing hospitality in the host country.