When bad things happen to good feedback: Exacerbating the need for self‐justification with self‐affirmations
Open accessAbstract
In numerous self-affirmation studies, Claude Steele and colleagues have demonstrated that self-affirmations reduce the need to justify dissonant behavior even when the affirmation is unrelated to the dissonance-evoking action. However, research has not sufficiently examined the impact of reaffirming self-aspects that are related to the dissonance. The authors argue that relevant affirmations of this sort can make salient the standards that are violated in the course of dissonant behavior; thereby increasing dissonance and the need for self justification. In a laboratory study using the induced-compliance paradigm, it was demonstrated that dissonance can be exacerbated by reaffirming standards that are violated in the course of the dissonant behavior.
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Same-domain affirmations increase people's sense of self-confidence, certainty, and impunity, producing effects opposite to those observed when the affirmation targets a domain unrelated to the threat.
“same-domain aYrmations increase people's sense of selfconfidence, certainty, and impunity.They thus produce eVects opposite to those observed when the aYrmation targets a domain unrelated to the threat (Blanton et al., 1997).”
From The psychology of self-defense: Self-affirmation theory (2006) · cites this paper as Blanton et al., 1997
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References 28 · Cited by 127
- Authors
- Blanton, H., Cooper, J., Slkurnik, I., & Aronson, J.
- Affiliations
- University of Michigan (US)
- Princeton University (US)
- The University of Texas at Austin (US)
- Corresponding author
- Blanton, Hart
- ORCID
- Blanton, Hart
- Venue
- Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 1997-07
- Volume
- 23
- Issue
- 7
- Pages
- 684-692
- ISSN
- 0146-1672 (ISSN-L)
- 1552-7433
- OpenAlex
- W2014288430
- Cited by
- 127
- References
- 28
- Citations by year
- 2026: 4 · 2025: 2 · 2024: 7 · 2023: 5 · 2022: 8 · 2021: 2 · 2020: 2 · 2019: 3 · 2018: 2 · 2017: 4 · 2016: 6 · 2015: 4 · 2014: 8 · 2013: 9 · 2012: 7
- FWCI
- 9.44
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin (publishedVersion)
- Deep Blue (University of Michigan) (acceptedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Social and Intergroup Psychology
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Psychology of Social Influence
- Keywords
- self-affirmation, self-justification, cognitive dissonance, self-concept
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