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A Cross-Cultural Evaluation Of Festinger's Theory Of Cognitive Dissonance, Harold E. Nelson

Journal of the Minnesota Academy of Science

The purpose of this paper is to attempt an evaluation, in cross-cultural terms, of Leon Festinger's Theory of Cognitive Dissonance, as a research tool. The specific problem to be treated is a consideration of the extent to which dissonance theory can be made applicable in varying situations in diverse cultural settings. Prior to an exposition of methodology, a short abstract of the hypothesis and some of its ramifications is appropriate.