Jecker and Landy (1969) conducted an experiment in which some participants were asked by the experimenter to return the monetary compensation they had received as a special favor to him, while others were asked by the department secretary to return the money as a favor to the psychology department, and still others received no request for the return of their compensation. The researchers found that participants who were approached by the experimenter evaluated him better than did participants in the other two experimental conditions. Why?
A) They felt guilty because the compensation was too generous.
B) Doing a favor for someone leads us to justify our own behavior.
C) The experimenter's request was more polite than the secretary's.
D) The experimenter promised to compensate them in another way.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The phenomenon at work here is known as cognitive dissonance. Participants who returned the money as a favor to the experimenter experienced dissonance between their actions and their belief that they are good people, leading them to justify their behavior by evaluating the experimenter more positively. This effect did not occur for participants who returned the money as a favor to the psychology department, as their behavior was better justified by their sense of duty to the department rather than to the experimenter personally.

Jecker and Landy (1969) Conducted an Experiment in Which Some