Plus 3 Tips to Combat It.
What is Cognitive Dissonance?
The concept of Cognitive Dissonance was introduced in 1957 by a psychologist named Leon Festinger. In his book, A Theory of Cognitive Dissonance, Festinger explored the ways in which our brains are hardwired to decode the world around us. When something occurs that doesn’t align with our core belief system, it causes us discomfort, which causes our brains to react by explaining it away in order to alleviate the discomfort.
We experience mild instances of cognitive dissonance more than we may realize. For instance, when we know we should be eating healthier but eat junk food instead, we justify the discomfort we feel by telling ourselves we deserve to treat ourselves. Or when we have a crush on someone who tells us they don’t feel the same, we soothe our ego by telling ourselves we didn’t really want to date them anyway.
Although not entirely healthy, cognitive dissonance is a fairly normal coping mechanism. However, it can become a much bigger issue when we fall in love with a narcissist.
Love Bombing
Anyone who has any understanding of narcissistic abuse is aware that love bombing is a tactic used to lure someone in.
