Do amnesics exhibit cognitive dissonance reduction? The role of explicit memory and attention in attitude change - PubMed (original) (raw)

Do amnesics exhibit cognitive dissonance reduction? The role of explicit memory and attention in attitude change

M D Lieberman et al. Psychol Sci. 2001 Mar.

Abstract

In two studies, we investigated the roles of explicit memory and attentional resources in the process of behavior-induced attitude change. Although most theories of attitude change (cognitive dissonance and self-perception theories) assume an important role for both mechanisms, we propose that behavior-induced attitude change can be a relatively automatic process that does not require explicit memory for, or consciously controlled processing of, the discrepancy between attitude and behavior. Using a free-choice paradigm, we found that both amnesics and normal participants under cognitive load showed as much attitude change as did control participants.

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