Cognitive dissonance describes the psychological discomfort

Position 1: Recognising these mental strategies is therefore essential for psychologists and marketers alike who seek to understand how attitudes are formed and changed.

Position 2: Leon Festinger first proposed the theory in 1957, arguing that this discomfort motivates individuals to reduce the inconsistency in some way.

Position 3: In consumer behaviour research, the concept explains why buyers sometimes convince themselves that a poor purchase was actually worthwhile, a phenomenon known as post-purchase rationalisation.

Position 4: Cognitive dissonance describes the psychological discomfort a person experiences when holding two contradictory beliefs simultaneously.

Position 5: The most common strategy is to change one of the conflicting beliefs, although people may also seek new information that supports the preferred view.