Cognitive Dissonance and Addiction Behaviors Elevate Addiction Services

A subsequent review of the literature, however, suggests that acute nicotine enhances reaction time and attention in nicotine-naïve individuals (Swan and Lessov-Schlaggar, 2007). Cocaine produced similar effects in a study of rats that were treated with the drug and then exposed to a sensory stimulus; the animals exhibited enhanced neural activation when later re-exposed to the stimulus (Devonshire, Mayhew, and Overton, 2007). Modifying social and environmental antecedents and consequences another approach to working with addictive behaviours18. Therapeutic cognitive dissonance addiction strategies such as contingency management, differential reinforcement of incompatible and alternate behaviours and rearrangement of environmental cues that set the occasion for addictive behaviour, including emotional triggers are used in this approach. Family members are counselled so as identify potential risk factors for relapse, such as emotional and behavioural changes. Dealing effectively with interpersonal problems in the family, and improving communication and avoiding conflicts have been effectively employed in the Indian context16,17.

• There are also individual differences in whether or not people act as this theory predicts.
• It can be difficult for those people who have never developed alcohol or drug addiction to understand the motivations and reasoning of those who have.
• In utero exposure to tobacco byproducts has been linked to cognitive deficits in laboratory animals and human adolescents (Dwyer, Broide, and Leslie, 2008).
• SST is particularly useful when patients return to drinking due to social pressures.
• Cognitive dissonance occurs when a person holds two related but contradictory cognitions, or thoughts.
• In one study, 5-year-olds whose mothers had used alcohol, cocaine, and/or opiates while pregnant ranked below unexposed controls in language skills, impulse control, and visual attention.

What Is Cognitive Dissonance Theory?

• While smokers are not craving, the shift in balance between benefit and negative consequences will motivate smokers to quit.
• The key is to notice when the pattern of delusional thinking starts to exacerbate and to challenge the feelings and thoughts to prevent relapse from occurring.
• He has been published in peer-reviewed journals, including the Journal of Clinical Psychology.
• Cognitive and behavioral inconsistencies produce cognitive dissonance and emotional adjustment needs to achieve equilibrium [39].

But that is difficult, so most smokers convince themselves that the links between smoking and lung cancer are not quite as strong as doctors claim (modify belief, or avoid the information). In the context of dieting, a person who intends to lose weight has dissonance because of his conflicting strong desires for fattening foods and to lose weight. After an overindulging evening in a special event, he may experience an intense feeling of discomfort (regret and guilt) for his behavior. He may reduce the discomfort by either downplaying the importance of weight loss, or engage in a rigorous exercise the day after. In both examples, the reactions show that they are justifying their irrational behavior.

How To Reduce Cognitive Dissonance

Individuals in the low-dissonance group chose between a desirable product and one rated 3 points lower on an 8-pointscale. When you discover new information and you’re faced with the uncomfortable decision to … well, make decisions, embrace a positive outlook. Sometimes, when you’re faced with difficult decisions in the moment, it’s best to take a break and revisit it later when all parties have processed what’s happened.

A Glass Half Full Not Empty: Strength-Based Practice in Persons with Substance Use Disorders

For example, Ye, Cho, Chen, and Jia [11] found a positive relationship between users’ perception of information overload and discontinuous usage intention in social media platforms. Moreover, the literature has widely documented the negative effects of user addiction on cognitive dissonance [90,91]. Pan-entertainment mobile live broadcast users experience information overload, service overload, and user addiction, leading to cognitive dissonance and resulting in discontinuous usage intention. Homogeneous content domain overload and heterogeneous information impact contribute to cognitive dissonances, such as anxiety, guilt, and regret, while the platform’s functions may exceed individual cognitive and processing abilities. The individual heterogeneous cognitive structure and negative effects of user addiction can also trigger cognitive dissonance, which can be alleviated by the behavioral intention of stopping use or uninstalling it. The current body of literature indicates a growing trend of discontinuous usage intentions among users of social media platforms.

Paul Wong and Peter Adams made critical revisions of the manuscript and contributed to the literature review as well as the qualitative data analysis. All authors directed manuscript conceptualization, implementation of the analyses, and interpretation of results. The heterotrait–monotrait ratio of validity, also known as the ratio of between-trait to within-trait correlations, is used to assess the discriminant validity of different constructs. It compares the average correlations between indicators of different constructs to the averages between indicators of the same construct. As shown in the Table 4, the results indicate that the HTMT values between each pair of variables in this study are below 0.85, indicating good discriminant validity for each variable. The discriminant validity analysis is to verify whether there is a statistical difference between two different constructs.

Download 3 Free Positive CBT Tools Pack (PDF)

Research shows that justifications give people the impression that they made a careful decision. In the face of temptation (problematic desires), we need to dispute rationally our distorted reasoning and the judgments that follow. After all, it takes only a single moment of weakness during a high-risk situation for a recovering addict to reconsider drug use and relapse. Friends and relatives who learn that an addict holds a negative view of drug (or behavior) and is motivated to quit may be surprised to learn of a sudden shift in preference for the drug.

• While this can feel uncomfortable at first, it’s helpful to reflect on the reasons behind our behavior.
• Patterns of movement through the various stages are categorized as stable, progressive or unstable11.
• Self-efficacy, or the belief in one’s ability to perform a task effectively [45], has also been shown to be a key determinant of user behavior in the context of technology usage [45].
• Jesse considers the need for helping people with alcohol and drug use to be a personal mission and one that he feels is necessary within the current epidemic of use throughout the country and world.
• Self-efficacy regulates motivation, thinking, emotional state, and behavior [45].

Practical examples of this process in everyday life can help us understand it a little better, and understand how this theory is important for helping people change behaviors that may be harmful to them. Self-efficacy has a moderating effect https://ecosoberhouse.com/ on the relationship between cognitive dissonance and the discontinuous usage intention of the pan-entertainment mobile live broadcast platform users. The relapse prevention programme combines a variety of cognitive behavioural strategies33.

Before we tackle how to reduce cognitive dissonance, we need to understand what exactly causes it. In most cases, a mismatch between a person’s beliefs and behaviors induces these uncomfortable feelings. Collective motivational interviewing (CMI) breaks new ground by extending the theory of motivational interviewing (MI) beyond the individual to include the social network.