The Role of Emotions in Cognitive Dissonance - Essay Example

www.academia-research.com Sumanta Sanyal d: 2nd December, 2005 A Comparative Study: The Role of Emotions in Cognitive Dissonance and Cognitive Behaviorism Abstract The study compares the role of emotions in the research on optimism and the role of emotions in research on altruism. The lead is taken from Sutton's lecture that is on optimism and of van Vugt that is on altruism. At the very onset it is best to say that available material on the altruism side is much more than on the optimism side. It is probable that this is so because altruism is more of a social mechanism that enhances overall human survival while optimism acts more on the personal level to do the same work. The study first personal well-beings factors like self-esteem and moves on to cognitive dissonance and the relationship it may engender between the individual and society. The study then focuses on the identity with its definition and how society itself fosters identity in individuals. It next utilises the research of Taylor and Brown (1988) to show how positive illusions can not only boost self-enhancement but also, at right levels, enhance societal objectives too. This is the crux of the study and it goes on to utilise the research of Van Vugt et al to show how self-enhancement motives can be made to dovetail with altruistic motives. The study concludes on the note that a society which generates the minimum amount of cognitive dissonance in individuals in the apparently conflicting aspects of self-enhancement and altruism by showing that both are compatible to a great degree will be successful in survival. Introduction Though there seems to be an apparent conflicting role of emotions in promoting personal welfare compared to social welfare Nathaniel Branden, psychotherapist, author and consultant says - "There is overwhelming evidence that the higher the level of self-esteem, the more likely one will be to treat others with respect, kindness and generosity" (Politics of self-esteem). The study begins on this positive note. The statement is true where the self-esteem is balanced and rational, as will be found later. Also, self-esteem is a major part of the positive illusions of Taylor and Brown (1988) that they assert are both normal and adaptive. Self-esteem also is dependent upon an active positive affect (Gibbons, 1986) (Sources derived from: Gramzow, Richard H., et al, 2002). On the other hand, the altruistic side, van Vugt and Snyder (2001) present a quite optimistic picture of human co-operation based on individual and social motivation and social identity. This issue should be looked at through the particular angle of personal safety that often is dependent upon social security. This is presented by the researchers in the specific forms of collective health scares or environmental crisis, both of which threaten the individual personally but can only be mitigated collectively through dependent social mediums (van Vugt & Snyder, 2001). Though this may seem rather cynical on the surface it is quite optimistic as self-esteem itself provisions society which itself can thrive only through individual well-being. This singularity in well-being of the self is often realised by individuals who then become willing to forsake a part of their individual benefits in favour of societal well-being at large. The study shall now look into each side of the issue separately. Cognitive Dissonance Cognitive dissonance is a term introduced by Leon Festinger. In 1967 experimental psychologists like Timothy Brock and Joe Balloun showed that subjects created a sort of barrier between themselves and cognitive inputs that were hostile to their own previous beliefs and actions (Negotiating Cognitive Dissonance). Thus, individuals do not induct wholly those inputs that are inconsistent with their own previously held mnemonic schema. These are sort of held in abeyance so that they can later be minimised by some other cognitive induction that can thus reduce the dissonance in the cognitive processes of the individual. Thus, cigarette smokers may know that cigarette smoking is extremely injurious to health but do nothing about it. They hold the knowledge in abeyance. To reduce the dissonance some often try to reduce the number of cigarettes they smoke each day. Some may even give up smoking after some time if the dissonance is prominent and tilted in favour of non-smoking and health. There are also others who just keep on smoking, simply cutting out all information pertaining to health problems arising from their habit (Negotiating Cognitive Dissonance). The reason why cognitive dissonance has been defined in this study is because personal welfare and the social one is often at conflict within the individual and causes cognitive dissonance. Now the study shall shift to a definition of personal optimism. The Identity The self, or identity, is based on three factors: position, difference and separateness, all of which vary in availability, accessibility and value according to culture and context (Vignoles, V.L.). At least six motives are involved in the identity process: self-esteem, distinctiveness, continuity, efficacy, belonging and meaning. Since identity is also embedded in societal processes which ultimately approve of the identity in varying degrees the generality and variability of the motives in contextual relationships depend on: which motives apply, the relative strengths of each motive, and how each motive can be satisfied (Vignoles, V. L.). Culture monitors identity in the following manners: a socially-established set of criteria against which identity is measured, and reifications of what society regards as desirable endstates of identity (Vignoles, V. L.). From these it can be gathered that the identity cannot exist totally independently but has to be somehow aligned to societal norms to do so. Thus, there is now scope for society to manipulate it. The Positive Emotions Taylor and Brown (1988) assert that three 'positive illusions' about the self are widespread among 'normal populations'. These are: unrealistic positives views of the self, exaggerated perceptions of personal control, and unrealistic optimism. Taylor and Brown (1988) also assert that these positive illusions promote certain positive identity enhancing qualities: happiness and contentment (they assert that experience has shown that positive illusions promote positive mood), ability to care for others (probably through influence of the positive mood), and capacity for creative and productive work (facilitates intellectually creative functioning, and enhances motivation, persistence and performance). Colvin and Block (1994) pose certain objections to these assertions by Taylor and Brown. They ask: Are these illusions so prevalent (Only university students in lab settings have been experimented on), Are they really illusions (How has 'reality been operationalised If by experimenter it may be inappropriate. Analysis at group level and not individual level), and Are they really associated with better mental health (Depressives, but not psychotics, seem to lack these illusions; depressives may not be more accurate but just more negative; remaining evidences focused on short-term benefits only). Colvin, Block & Funder (1995) recommended their Q-Sort Methodology for questioning whereby subjects would be asked to rate their own characteristics of self-enhancement as well as other qualified examiners and the two scores would then be compared and a final score reached at. They also suggested longitudinal studies at ages 14, 18 and 23 so that the progress of certain self-enhancing qualities could be monitored. They also suggested laboratory-based studies where by observers would rate the subjects' behaviour in dyadic interaction. Later to this Taylor and Brown (1994) clarified their position thus: accuracy is not necessary for mental health, and illusions foster happiness, caring, creativity and growth. They also asserted that this does not necessarily mean that: more illusion is better, all illusions are good, illusions are necessary for mental health, illusions can cure people of physical illness, and that the human mind is untuned to reality detection. These clarifications bear out the fact that positive illusions, or in a sense positive emotions, should have a certain level that can sustain both individual and societal well-being. Only then can it be useful to the individual and society. This again is borne out by the fact that recent research has shown that aggression and violence can stem from a high level of self-esteem when it feels threatened. Such high levels of self-esteem can also fuel narcissistic feelings that are harmful both to the individual as a sort of delusion and to society as a nonconforming attitude Altruism In a world that is highly pressurised by scarce resources that somehow have to be evenly distributed altruism is not only admirable but also desirable. Van Vugt and Snyder (2001) report that there are two classes of cooperative problems - those involving distribution of scarce resources and those involving provision of public goods. Resource requirements often require individual restraint - water conservation - while public goods like volunteer services and government welfare programs require that enough citizens make a useful contribution (Van Vugt & Snyder, 2001). To enable this researchers and psychologists have assumed that there should be a central authority that restricts people's self-interests and freedom. Nevertheless, Van Vugt and Snyder (2001) still assert that a lot of human motives swerve from the direction of economic self-interest towards community-driven motives like positive community exchanges, trust, community pride and shared identity. Now this assertion is enabling for this study that is trying to find a solution to the seeming hiatus between self-interest and public interest. By making public interest a part of self-interest, as Van Vugt and Snyder has pointed out, this is possible. The individual does not feel burdened and cheated by public good. He or she feels it is in his or her interest to sustain society, even at the cost of some tolerable amount of self-deprivation. Here again the key word is tolerance. Different societies enable different levels of tolerance to others. Sedikides, Gaertner and Toguchi (2003) assert that Westerners and Easterners self-enhance tactically. Westerners self-enhance on the attributes of perceived cultural idealism of individualism while Easterners self-enhance on the attributes of perceived cultural idealism of collectivism. The perception is individual and varies among individuals. In both cases it should be noted that society has some role in instilling self-promotion in individuals that it fosters and, thus, it is logical to expect that society somehow ensures that its own survival is not threatened in any way by individual self-enhancement, though this may be individualistic, as in the West, or collectivistic, as in the East. Conclusion The study thus concludes on the note that positive emotions do affect personal well-being as well as the collective one provided an optimum level is maintained. This means that a culture that can sustain the minimum hiatus between personal and the social one will generate the least cognitive dissonance and will be most effective in fostering the community well-being through the personal one with the least amount of reinforcements. This optimum level should be ascertained in some degree by future research. References Colvin, C. R., Block, J., & Funder, D. C. (1995). Overly positive self-evaluations and personality: Negative implications for mental health. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 68, 1152-1162. Colvin, C. R., & Block, J. (1994a). Do positive illusions foster mental health An examination of the Taylor and Brown formulation. Psychological Bulletin, 116, 3-20. Colvin, C. R., & Block, J. (1994b). Positive illusions and well-being revisited: Separating fiction from fact. Psychological Bulletin, 116, 28. Gramzow, R. H., et al, Self-evaluation bias and academic performance: Some ways and some reasons why. Journal of Research in Personality, 37 (2003), 41-61. Negotiating Cognitive Dissonance, Chapter 7. Extracted on 1st December, 2005, from: http://www.uta.edu/psychology/faculty/levine/EBOOK/sense7dbl.pdf#search='Negotiating%20cognitive%20dissonance' The Politics of Self-Esteem. Extracted on 1st December, 2005, from: http://www.lifesci.sussex.ac.uk/teaching/C8034/PAID19.ppt Sedikides, Constantine, et al, Pancultural Self-enhancement Reloaded: A Meta-Analytic Reply To Heine (In Press). Extracted on 1st December, 2005, from: http://www.soton.ac.uk/crsi/SedikidesGaertnerVeveainpress.htm Andersen, J. E., and Dr. Asbury, 2002, Self-Esteem: The Myth. Extracted on 1st December, 2005, from: http://www.campbell.edu/faculty/asbury/sample_paper.pdf#search='The%20%27dark%20side%27%20of%20high%20selfesteem' Taylor, S. E., & Brown, J. D. (1988). Illusion and well-being: A social psychological perspective on mental health. Psychological Bulletin, 103, 193-210. Taylor, S. E., & Brown, J. D. (1994). Positive illusions and well-being revisited: Separating fact from fiction. Psychological Bulletin, 116, 21-27. Van Vugt, M. & Snyder, M. (2002). Cooperation in the 21st Century: Fostering community action and civic participation. American Behavioural Scientist, 45, 761-918 (Special issue) Vignoles, V.L. Website: http://www.sussex.ac.uk/psychology/profile132528.html Read More