Case Study Design and Analysis – Cognitive Dissonance

Case Study Design and Analysis – Cognitive Dissonance

Background

Kate is 23 years old and married to Randal, who is 25 years old. The two are only five months in marriage after one month of friendship that began soon after her graduation. Kate comes from a rich background and was born into a family of lawyers. Her mother and father were both attorneys, and she was raised in a family where they had most of the things they needed and wanted in life. Her father and mother’s careers allowed Kate to live a good life and attend a good school. Also, Kate was the last born in a family of three, and she was the only girl. Even though Kate graduated with a Bachelor’s in Education, she does not have a job and is not seriously looking for one. She wishes to gain a job at a specific school, despite applying three times and being told there are no openings. Randal works as a nurse in a community hospital, and since he comes from a middle-class family, he believes in working hard at his workplace. Kate has two friends, Anita and Beth, who are her childhood friends and daughters of lawyers. Despite the fact that they are not married, they have well-paying careers thanks to their parents’ connections. They spend most of their leisure time together.

The Case Story

Currently, Kate and Randal are having marital challenges. The main reason for disagreement is Kate’s constant demand for expensive things and outings. Kate believes her husband is obligated to buy her the things she demands, even if he cannot afford them. Her wealthy friends encourage her to ask her husband for money so she can buy outfits, handbags, and shoes. They also encourage her to ask her spouse for permission to go on their expensive outings. While Randal loves his wife and would want to meet her needs, he cannot afford especially because his nursing job doesn’t pay very well. Also, he believes that Kate should consider looking for a job and start taking work seriously (Branscome & Baron, 2016). This topic of her taking up a job in any school with a vacancy has caused a lot of arguments and disagreements between them. Kate insists she should have a job in this school where there is still no vacancy. Randal refuses to finance Kate’s luxurious demands, and this scenario makes Kate depressed.

Analysis of the Case

Kate’s story is a case of cognitive dissonance because her beliefs conflict with Randal’s and society’s. Kate believes that her husband should fund her luxurious needs, while on the other side, Randal believes that Kate should look for a job and finance her expensive needs. Hence, this whole scenario confirms the claim by Bran and Vaidis (2020) that cognitive dissonance occurs when there are conflicting beliefs. Kate’s beliefs also conflict with society because the general understanding in the organization is that an adult capable of working and with the required certificates to get employment should consider getting employed and meeting their needs (Bran & Vaidis, 2020). Kate’s friends contribute to her challenges since they pressure her and convince her to live a luxurious life that she cannot afford. Kate’s upbringing is another contributor to her current attitude and situation. Kate is the only girl in her wealthy family. It is indicated in her background that she got everything she asked for. According to Kim et al. (2020), Kate has not experienced delayed gratification, making her demanding and dependent. Since she always got everything she wanted during her childhood, she believes she now should get what she wants from her husband even if she does not work for it.

Recommendations

Kate needs to see a counselor for help with her condition. Cognitive dissonance is a state that can be changed. Since she is currently not seeing the impacts of her action, Randal can seek the help of a counselor who should take Kate through changing her perspective. According to Cancino-Montecinos, Björklund, and Lindholm (2020), the counselor will help her be mindful of others, especially her husband, and hopefully, she may change and stop her demands. She will also be assisted in critically analyzing her existing views and challenging them to see how they are affecting her marriage and life.

References

Bran, A., & Vaidis, D. C. (2020). On the Characteristics of the Cognitive Dissonance State: Exploration Within the Pleasure Arousal Dominance Model. Psychologica Belgica, 60(1), 86–102. https://doi.org/10.5334/pb.517

Branscome, N.R., & Baron, R.A. (2016). Social Psychology. Boston: Pearson Publishing

Cancino-Montecinos, S., Björklund, F., & Lindholm, T. (2020). A General Model of Dissonance  Reduction: Unifying Past Accounts via an Emotion Regulation Perspective. Frontiers in   Psychology, 11, 540081. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.540081

Kim, S. J., Kim, H. J., & Kim, K. (2020). Time Perspectives and Delay of Gratification – The       Role of Psychological Distance Toward the Future and Perceived Possibility of Getting a Future Reward. Psychology research and behavior management, 13, 653–663. https://doi.org/10.2147/PRBM.S246443

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For this assignment, you will identify the main concepts and terms learned in this week’s online lectures and textbook readings and create a fictional case study (which may not be related to actual individuals). The main concepts are self-serving biases, self-presentation, attitudes, and how belief systems affect the individual’s behavior (and vice versa.

Case Study Design and Analysis – Cognitive Dissonance

You will use the following guidelines while writing your case study:

Background: You need to describe the demographics of individuals involved in the case study, including their age, gender, occupation, education, relationships, and family history.
The case story: You need to describe a scenario using the third person in which an individual is challenged with a situation causing cognitive dissonance.
Analysis of the case: You need to utilize the information learned from the online lectures and text readings to analyze the case study. Be specific in your analysis using supporting evidence from outside sources when needed.
Recommendations: You need to end the case study with your recommendations or suggestions you would have implemented in such a situation to assist in changing the behavior of the individual involved in the case study.