Why inconsistency can influence behaviour

Cognitive dissonance is a psychological state of discomfort that arises when a person perceives inconsistency between their beliefs, attitudes or behaviour. Two things differing is not enough. The person must find the inconsistency uncomfortable and feel motivated to reduce it.

Consider a student who believes that everyone who contributes to a group task deserves recognition. Yet when presenting the finished work, they deliberately leave out a teammate's contribution. That behaviour conflicts with their belief about fairness. Recognising the conflict may produce dissonance if the belief matters to them.

People don't always respond to their own behaviour by admitting, “I acted against my values.” They may change what they do. They may instead change how they think about what they did.

How people reduce dissonance

People can make the inconsistency less uncomfortable in several ways:

• Change behaviour: the student corrects the omission and acknowledges the teammate's work, bringing their behaviour closer to their existing belief.
• Change a belief or attitude: the student comes to believe that recognition should go mainly to whoever presents the work. Their view shifts to fit the behaviour they have already performed.
• Add a justification: the student tells themselves that the teammate's contribution was too small to mention. With this explanation, the omission seems more compatible with being fair.
• Reduce the importance of the inconsistency: the student decides that credit for this particular task does not really matter.

Reducing discomfort does not necessarily mean correcting the original behaviour. Someone may feel better after justifying an action, even though their account is no more accurate and their conduct no fairer.

The role of cognitive dissonance in understanding human behaviour

Cognitive dissonance helps explain both behaviour change and resistance to change. A person may act differently to bring their behaviour into line with their beliefs. Or they may defend an existing action, adjusting their beliefs or explaining away the conflict. This helps explain why attitudes can follow behaviour rather than always determining it beforehand.

The explanation is especially relevant when the inconsistency concerns something personally important and the person feels responsible for the action. A student who sees the omission as freely chosen may find it harder to dismiss than an omission they believe was unavoidable.

Inconsistent behaviour alone, though, does not establish that dissonance occurred. The person must perceive the inconsistency and experience discomfort. A later change in attitude doesn't prove that dissonance caused it either: new information or other influences could explain the change. Use cognitive dissonance to explain the link between perceived conflict, discomfort and a response—not as a label for every contradictory action.