Psychological Approaches to Literature 7

Consistency Theory

Description
When our inner systems (beliefs, attitudes, values, etc.) all support one another and when these are also supported by external evidence, then we have a comfortable state of affairs. The discomfort of cognitive dissonance occurs when things fall out of alignment, which leads us to try to achieve a maximum practical level of consistency in our world.

We also have a very strong need to believe we are being consistent with social norms. When there is conflict between behaviors that are consistent with inner systems and behaviors that are consistent with social norms, the potential threat of social exclusion often sways us towards the latter, even though it may cause significant inner dissonance.

Ways we achieve consistency between conflicting items include:

Denial or ignoring : 'I didn't see it happen.'
Rationalization and excuses : 'It was going to fall anyway.'
Separation of items :'I don't use my car enough to make a difference .'
Transcendence : 'Nobody is perfect.'
Changing item : 'I'll be more careful next time.'
Persuasion : 'I'm good, really, aren't I?'

Example
If you make a promise, you will feel bad if you do not keep it.

SOURCE: http://changingminds.org/explanations/theories/consistency_theory.htm