Self-consistency for low self-esteem in dissonance processes: the role of self-standards.
The self-consistency revision of cognitive dissonance theory predicts that people with low self-esteem are less likely to experience dissonance arousal compared to people with high self-esteem. Two experiments investigated how the accessibility of different self-standards in the context of a dissonant act activates the consistency role of self-esteem in the process of cognitive dissonance arousal. In Experiment I, after participants wrote a counter-attitudinal essay, priming personal self-standards caused more attitude change for those with high compared to low self-esteem, whereas priming no standards or priming normative self-standards caused the same level of attitude change among both self-esteem groups. Experiment 2 showed that the self-consistency effect for low self-esteem participants only occurred among those who were high in self-certainty when personal self-standards were primed. The importance of self-standards for understanding the role of self-esteem in dissonance processes is discussed.
Stone
Jeff
J
University of Arizona, Department of Psychology, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA. jeffs@email.arizona.edu
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001240:Aspirations, Psychological; D001290:Attitude; D002755:Choice Behavior; D003073:Cognitive Dissonance; D003657:Decision Making; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007389:Internal-External Control; D008297:Male; D010555:Personality Inventory; D011057:Politics; D012649:Self Concept; D012919:Social Behavior; D012925:Social Conformity