Chapter 16: Cognitive Dissonance Theory

Cognitive Dissonance Theory holds that people experience discomfort when there is an inconsistency between their attitudes and their actions. This discomfort is known as "cognitive dissonance", and the theory states that people have an inherent need to avoid or alleviate this feeling. The level of dissonance a person experiences is directly proportional to the importance of the issue as well as the level of the discrepancy between the person's attitudes and behaviors.
To deal with cognitive dissonance, people can either change their behaviors or their attitudes; attitudes are easier to change.

As an example of this theory, a person might decide that he or she wants to save money rather than spending it. This person might set some kind of spending limit for a certain period, such as a month and decide that they will not go over that limit until they have saved what they wanted to save. However, as time goes on, the person might begin to go over the limit slightly at first, then gradually increasing their "overspending". As this person saw him or herself doing this, he or she would most likely try to rationalize the behavior by telling him or herself that it's only a slight overspending. Eventually, however, the monthly spending limit would most likely collapse. Rather than change the spending behavior, a person is more likely to change his or her attitude towards the spending behavior in order to justify it, ultimately leading him or her down a sort of slippery slope until the previously-established system is gone completely.