Editing Content theory (section)

==Cognitive dissonance theory==
{{Main|Cognitive dissonance}}
As suggested by [[Leon Festinger]], cognitive dissonance occurs when an individual experiences some degree of discomfort resulting from an inconsistency between two cognitions: their views on the world around them and their own personal feelings and actions.{{citation needed|date=November 2019}} For example, a consumer may seek to reassure themselves regarding a purchase, feeling that another decision may have been preferable. Their feeling that another purchase would have been preferable is inconsistent with their action of purchasing the item. The difference between their feelings and beliefs causes dissonance, so they seek to reassure themselves.

While not a theory of motivation, per se, the theory of cognitive dissonance proposes that people have a [[drive theory|motivational drive]] to reduce dissonance. The [[cognitive miser]] perspective makes people want to justify things in a simple way in order to reduce the effort they put into cognition.  They do this by changing their attitudes, beliefs, or actions, rather than facing the inconsistencies, because dissonance is a mental strain. Dissonance is also reduced by justifying, blaming, and denying. It is one of the most influential and extensively studied theories in [[social psychology]].