Festinger and Carlsmith (1959) performed a famous experiment on cognitive dissonance in which subjects were asked to lie to a fellow student (about how fun a psychology experiment was) for either $1 or $20. For subjects in the $1 condition, dissonance was created because these subjects thought to themselves: "I am a nice, ethical person, but I have just been mean and told a lie." It appears that the $1 subjects were ultimately able to reduce this dissonance by thinking to themselves: ____.
A) "I did not really tell a lie because the experiment was not that boring. In fact, the more I think about it, the more I think that it was kind of fun!"
B) "I know I told that person a lie. But so what? There are bigger problems in this world!!"
C) "Lying is a terrible thing. I swear that I will never do it again."
D) "Whatever! I got $1 for doing almost nothing! Good deal!!"

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The $1 subjects were able to reduce their dissonance by convincing themselves that the experiment was actually somewhat enjoyable, thus justifying their lie as not actually being a lie. This is known as cognitive reevaluation or finding a way to rationalize their behavior in a way that reduces dissonance.

Festinger and Carlsmith (1959) Performed a Famous Experiment on Cognitive