According to the excerpt, how do people commonly resolve the discomfort of cognitive dissonance?
Answer and explanation
Correct answer: D. By rationalizing behavior
- Step 1: The author specifies: 'To alleviate this psychological discomfort, individuals frequently engage in rationalization, dismissing disconfirming empirical evidence or retroactively modifying their private attitudes...'
- Step 2: Rationalization and attitude shifts restore mental consistency.
Answer
By rationalizing behavior.
Why not the others: 'By undergoing neurosurgical ablation...' is an extreme and irrelevant medical intervention; 'By permanently erasing previous memories...' is science fiction; 'By immediately admitting intellectual error...' contradicts the defensive psychological mechanisms described.
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