Cognitive Dissonance: What To Look Out For And Ways To Reduce It

What Is Cognitive Dissonance?

Cognitive dissonance is a psychological phenomenon in which the mind resists or rejects contradictory information. The term comes from two Greek words, meaning "I don't believe this." and "Dissonance" (from the Latin word for "difficult"). It is a common feature of human psychology, but it can be dangerous when applied to critical thinking skills.

The problem with cognitive dissonance is that it can lead to irrational conclusions. The more you have a series of beliefs, values, or actions that are dissonant with each other, the more you will strive to reconcile them. For example, if you believe that smoking cigarettes is bad, and you smoke one anyway, you'll experience discomfort. It's a logical response, and one that is designed to encourage us to choose one belief, value, or action over another. In this case, the logical conclusion would be to stop smoking.

The problem with this approach to critical thinking is that it's not always accurate. A person could rationalize, that they don't really believe in God and still maintain a strong set of moral beliefs, or a person might be more prone to accept a large sum of money, that they just did a job for without asking for. It works better in some areas of critical thinking, than it does in others.

This is where the concept of cognitive dissonance fails us. We should not always choose to eliminate a critical thinking skill merely because it is dissonant. Some are better off than others. Understand where you should focus your efforts, when it comes to critical thinking skills.

Should You Expand?

Always remember, that you do not need to master every possible skills in order to be a good critical thinker. Not everyone needs that level of skill. Your own personal priorities will dictate, where your focus should be. For example, if you know that a career in medicine is what you truly want to pursue, then it makes sense to focus on critical thinking skills that will help you in that career. If however you know, that you would prefer to play the piano, then it might be better to focus on specific information, that will better assist you in this pursuit.

Look at each situation and determine which set of skills would be best for it, then focus on that. In the future, you should also be able to determine which skills would be best for you in different situations. This is just one of the skills, that you will need to pick and choose as you move forward in your life. The more decision making skills you have, the better. The more skills you have that directly contribute to your goals, the better. Look at the skills you have, or have had, that have contributed to your goals so far. Next, look at the skills you have, that are not currently contributing to your goals. Finally, look at the areas in your life, that could use some improvement. Picking and choosing which skills to focus on will be the key to your future success.

Types Of Cognitive Dissonances

Just like there are skills that you need to expand on, there are also skills that you need to deactivate. These are known as "cognitive dissonances", and they can cause problems in your life. There are many types of cognitive dissonances, and you should be aware of them all.

• Cynicism And Idealism

Cynicism is the general belief that people are not basically good. They are mostly cruel predators, that will hurt you whenever they can. This means that you should act in a way, that will keep yourself safe, because people are not good. Cynicism is easy to identify, because it usually comes from a bad experience with someone.

Idealism however, can come from anywhere. It is important to remember, that you don't know the entire story of a person. They might have had a horrible childhood and made assumptions about everyone based on that. They might have been the victim of a crime and are now paranoid, that everyone is going to harm them.

However they came to their idealism, they probably think that it's true, which makes them cynical. Idealism can drive you towards a career in the helping professions, such as teaching or social work, or it can lead you into the religious field. It's up to you to decide where your idealism is taking you.

• Humility And Self-Knowledge

It is possible for someone to be humble without being self-aware. The problem with this approach is that humility tends to make one feel weak and inferior. If you're feeling insecure, then you'll want to avoid humility. You may even try to emulate, what others do and become arrogant instead. Self-awareness requires a lot of introspection and reflection. You must examine your own thoughts and feelings. When you do so, you may find that you're not as confident as you thought. However, if you continue to reflect on yourself, eventually the truth will come out.

• Self Actualization

Self-actualization is simply the act of doing what you want to do, regardless of other people. You may get mad at people for not having the same ideas that you do, but if you truly want to be an artist, or a doctor, or whatever it is that you've decided you want to be, then you need to follow your dreams regardless of what other people think. This can be hard at times, however, if you allow your self-actualization to go out of control, if you start changing your major just because you think it might be more enjoyable or easier, then you have fallen into the pitfall of self-actualization.

You also need to make sure, that you have good time management skills. If you spend all of your time and money pursuing your dreams, then you might find yourself in a bind. This can happen if you decide to pursue an artistic career, for example. However, if you learn how to manage your time well, then you will be able to achieve your goals. Self-actualization is a double-edged sword. While you should use it to help you through life, it can also be the cause of many problems if not used correctly.

There are two ways in which you can deal with the world: through pain or through happiness. Pain is the easy way out of everything. If you're feeling pain, then it's less likely, that you'll do something stupid like kill yourself. Instead, you'll take the easy way and suffer in silence. This approach is not very intelligent, but it does keep you alive.

Happiness is the more intelligent choice. It's always better to seek joy and happiness rather than pain. However, you still have a choice. You can continue to make your life a joyless misery by over-opting for the negative, or you can embrace the positive and see what happens. Your life will change for the better.