Stalin
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Apr 4, 2008
- Messages
- 1,818
I was at a loss to explain how otherwise intelligent, logical people such as evangelicals and neo-conservatives are starting to drift into delusional behaviour, paranoia and outright fear at the thought of the election of Barrack Obama, who apart from a gift for oratory, is pretty much a conventional bourgeois politcian.
Then I realised that this is a a very good demonstration of Festingers ( and others ) theory of cognitive dissonance. I will post an extract from wiki and invite fellow memebers to help these folks recognise their situation and take appropriate action..for no fee.
"...Cognitive dissonance is an uncomfortable feeling caused by holding two contradictory ideas simultaneously. Ideas may include attitudes and beliefs, and also the awareness of one's behavior. The theory of cognitive dissonance proposes that people have a motivational drive to reduce dissonance by changing their attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors or by justifying or rationalizing their attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors.[1] Cognitive dissonance theory is one of the most influential and extensively studied theories in social psychology
Dissonance can be experienced as anxiety, guilt, shame, anger, embarrassment, stress, and other negative emotional states. When people's ideas are consistent with each other, they are in a state of consonance. Under these circumstances, people are content and relaxed, and less likely to experience aversive emotions. When dissonance is present, one of the conflicting ideas may be a fundamental element of the self-concept, such as "I am a good person" or "I made the right decision." This can result in rationalization when a person is presented with evidence of a bad choice. It can also lead to confirmation bias, the denial of discomfirming evidence, and other ego defense mechanisms.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cognitive_dissonance
Then I realised that this is a a very good demonstration of Festingers ( and others ) theory of cognitive dissonance. I will post an extract from wiki and invite fellow memebers to help these folks recognise their situation and take appropriate action..for no fee.
"...Cognitive dissonance is an uncomfortable feeling caused by holding two contradictory ideas simultaneously. Ideas may include attitudes and beliefs, and also the awareness of one's behavior. The theory of cognitive dissonance proposes that people have a motivational drive to reduce dissonance by changing their attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors or by justifying or rationalizing their attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors.[1] Cognitive dissonance theory is one of the most influential and extensively studied theories in social psychology
Dissonance can be experienced as anxiety, guilt, shame, anger, embarrassment, stress, and other negative emotional states. When people's ideas are consistent with each other, they are in a state of consonance. Under these circumstances, people are content and relaxed, and less likely to experience aversive emotions. When dissonance is present, one of the conflicting ideas may be a fundamental element of the self-concept, such as "I am a good person" or "I made the right decision." This can result in rationalization when a person is presented with evidence of a bad choice. It can also lead to confirmation bias, the denial of discomfirming evidence, and other ego defense mechanisms.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cognitive_dissonance
You're really a conservative having a good laugh at looney left rhetoric - am I right?? 
