Cognitive dissonance occurs when:

Cognitive dissonance occurs when:

• A. Evidence disputes long held principles
• B. Paradigms are based upon untestable theories
• C. Theories are reduced
• D. Theories cannot be reduced

Answer: (A)

Cognitive dissonance is the psychological discomfort that arises when someone holds two or more contradictory beliefs, or when new information directly challenges a belief they already hold. When evidence disputes long-held principles, that creates a direct conflict between what a person believes and what the new information asserts, producing dissonance. The discomfort motivates the person to reduce the inconsistency, often by adjusting the belief, rationalizing the evidence, or dismissing the new information. The other scenarios describe issues in the philosophy of science or the status of theories rather than the personal tension created by conflicting evidence, so they don’t fit the concept as closely.

Cognitive dissonance is the psychological discomfort that arises when someone holds two or more contradictory beliefs, or when new information directly challenges a belief they already hold. When evidence disputes long-held principles, that creates a direct conflict between what a person believes and what the new information asserts, producing dissonance. The discomfort motivates the person to reduce the inconsistency, often by adjusting the belief, rationalizing the evidence, or dismissing the new information. The other scenarios describe issues in the philosophy of science or the status of theories rather than the personal tension created by conflicting evidence, so they don’t fit the concept as closely.