Psychological Detective, Unit 3

Term Paper Title	Psychological Detective, Unit 3
# of Words	406
# of Pages (250 words per page double spaced)	1.62

Psychological Detective, Unit 3
General Psychology

5/20/2001

Take a look at Figure 4-3 on page 147 of your textbook. Why was cognitive dissonance aroused in participants who chose between two desirable gifts? How did the participants reduce this dissonance? Write down some possible answers to these questions before reading further.

My answer:

The psychological state of cognitive dissonance was stimulated because a choice of two desirable gifts caused an incompatibility or inconsistency of choosing the best one. The decision is quite difficult. After the decision is made, participants diminished this dissonance by escalating the assessment of the selected item and lessening the valuation of the discarded article.

For a moment, think of yourself as one of Dr. Le Doux's laboratory rats (pg. 166 in your textbook). Each time you hear a tone, you also receive a mild electric shock to your foot. How would such an experience change your future behavior? Write down you answer before reading further.

My answer:

My future behavior would be affected in the sense of known anticipation of shock, and exhibiting fear. The common physiological traits that I would most likely present are rapid heartbeat and breathing, muscle tension, and possibly, positioned in a solid manner. In c...

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