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America at a Crossroads: When Our Values and Reality Collide.
Typically, cognitive dissonance applies to individual behavior. However, upon reflecting on a recent article about some of the people who have been laid off by the DOGE cuts, I think, as a country, we are experiencing a cultural cognitive dissonance. Cultural cognitive dissonance is a giant leap, but I'm at a loss on how to explain what is unfolding before my eyes. How do you describe how so many Americans observe the same events yet have two totally different opinions? It's not a political issue, per se, but one regarding seeing people laid off or fired without warning or cause. I'm getting ahead of myself. Let's define cognitive dissonance, summarize the article's main point, and then ponder whether it is a cultural cognitive dissonance issue.
Cognitive Dissonance Definition
Cognitive dissonance is an internal conflict that occurs in a person when their conflicting beliefs collide. Cognitive dissonance is the mental discomfort experienced when simultaneously holding two or more conflicting beliefs, values, or attitudes. https://helpfulprofessor.com/cognitive-dissonance-examples/
What determines the intensity of the cognitive dissonance experienced?
One theory claims that the stronger the belief, the weaker the cognitive dissonance is, and the weaker the attitude, the stronger the cognitive dissonance. https://www.communicationtheory.org/cognitive-dissonance-theory/
Main Point of Article
The main point of the AP Article, Thrust into unemployment, axed federal workers face relatives who celebrate their firing, is summarized in the title. Most recently fired workers experienced a complete lack of empathy for the sudden job loss and loss of health benefits from family members and friends. The family members stated the government inefficiencies were finally being dealt with, which caused those who lost their jobs to express profound surprise, bewilderment, and hurt that the comments centered on the great job being done by DOGE. The result was that the jobless workers felt they were categorized as inefficient, wasteful, and fraudulent in their job performance.
Cultural Cognitive Dissonance
I am still trying to understand the political and religious divisions we are experiencing. The thought that family members and friends can disregard a loved one's sudden job loss is unfathomable. Further, their justification is the prioritization of supporting a political figure and the perceived cutting of government spending. Is this the weaker attitude that describes those who can embrace the mental conflict (cognitive dissonance)?
How can family members and friends mentioned in the article not have a mental disconnect?
What values do they hold?
How can we regain the space of caring for our neighbors if we do not even care for our own families?
Regardless of how we define what is happening, we must unite and fight for the space of caring for our families and neighbors because a divided house cannot stand.
