As you and your friends return home and meet up for the first time since high school, you find that you've all taken different paths in life. Based on cognitive dissonance and the principle of justification of effort, who would be the LEAST satisfied with what he or she is currently doing?
A) Jill, who just finished a grueling four-month training period with the Marines
B) Matt, who is in the Peace Corps, living in third-world countries with no modern conveniences
C) Fiona, who is going to a local college with a loose admissions policy, and whose parents are paying her way
D) Ann, who went through a five-step process to be accepted at her college and now is taking rigorous courses

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

According to the principle of justification of effort, the more effort a person puts into achieving a goal, the more they will value that goal. Fiona has not put in much effort to be where she is currently, as she has a loose admissions policy and her parents are paying her way. Therefore, she may be the least satisfied with what she is currently doing.

As You and Your Friends Return Home and Meet Up