Cognitive Dissonance Paper Psychology Research Paper

Cognitive Dissonance
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Cognitive Dissonance
A friend called Charles has been smoking for the past two years, despite knowing that it causes cancer. He has been struggling to quit for fear of cancer, but he seems addicted, and nothing much can be done. Charles does not have control on where to smoke, and I have found myself grabbing him when he tries to light cigarettes no smoking zone. Although he does not like the situation he finds himself in, it is like he has very little to do to stop the habit.
Interestingly, Charles does not want to go for rehabilitation. He says that his situation does not warrant reformation because he has been smoking for only three years. He is, however, worried that smoking may cause cancer, which will eventually lead to his death. He expects to have a family and see his grandchildren in future, but cancer may kill his dreams. Charles argues that he does not smoke enough cigarette to cause to cause him severe harm and further states that cigarettes have enabled him to deal with anxiety.
The incident that provoked dissonance was when Charles watched a television program in which one of the characters died of lung cancer. The figure in the movie was a chain smoker who changed one cigarette after the other until he eventually succumbed to death. Charles got worried because he had hardly taken two years of smoking but he was torn between managing an...