The results of the cognitive dissonance study by Festinger and Carlsmith (1959) showed that participants were most likely to recall a very boring task as actually being quite fun when:

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Festinger and Carlsmith's study showed that participants who were paid $1 to lie about the boring task experienced cognitive dissonance because they had a low external justification for lying. In order to resolve this dissonance, they convinced themselves that the task was actually enjoyable, thus changing their attitude to be consistent with their behavior. Participants who were paid $20 had a higher external justification for lying, which made their behavior more understandable and reduced the need for cognitive dissonance. Therefore, they were less likely to change their attitude about the task.

The Results of the Cognitive Dissonance Study by Festinger and Carlsmith