By Neena Strichart
Most of us hold belief systems based on information we have gathered from various valued sources. Whether those sources are trusted people we hold in esteem or readings we have deemed scholarly in nature, we nevertheless have reasons for what we believe to be true.
Throughout our lives, many of us will have our beliefs challenged by new information garnered through interaction with others or during academic pursuits.
Sometimes that new information is so startling it challenges our original beliefs and causes us to experience great deals of stress. That phenomenon is called cognitive dissonance. According to the website Merriam-Webster.com, cognitive dissonance is:
Mental conflict that occurs when beliefs or assumptions are contradicted by new information. The concept was introduced by the psychologist Leon Festinger (1919—89) in the late 1950s. He and later researchers showed that, when confronted with challenging new information, most people seek to preserve their current understanding of the world by rejecting, explaining away, or avoiding the new information or by convincing themselves that no conflict really exists. Cognitive dissonance is nonetheless considered an explanation for attitude change.
This week I have experienced a bit of cognitive dissonance in my own life. I have chosen to think of that information as additions to my “what the hell?” list. I will now share that information with you, our loyal readers. Note!this list is in no particular order:
1. Up until this week, I believed that festive gift-giving things like fruit baskets, new furniture or seasonal decorations were the only types of things that advertisers should encourage us to order early so “yours can be received in time for the holidays.” Excuse my cognitive dissonance, but Tuesday night I darn near fell out of my chair while watching a commercial that featured a do-it-yourself HIV testing kit where the voiceover person encouraged the viewer to “order yours now to receive it in time for the holidays!” Really? What kind of crazy ad campaign is that? The item doesn’t sound very holiday-ish to me.
2. It had always been my understanding that since I live near the ocean in a place called Signal Hill, the land beneath me is composed of rock, sand, dirt, oil (that doesn’t belong to me), sediment and, of course, water. Imagine my surprise when I learned at this week’s Signal Hill council meeting that our city sits atop an ancient redwood forest. Yes, that’s what I heard. Furthermore, according to the city’s water experts, that forest is the cause of our town to have water that has a bit of color to it. Well, I guess if whiskey gets its golden character from being aged in oak barrels, Signal Hill is entitled to have a signature hue to its liquid resources due to exposure to ancient redwood.
3. I have been a fan of Bill Cosby’s since I was a pre-teen watching the show I Spy on television. Through the years, I grew to admire Mr. Cosby, and well, pretty much had him up on a proverbial pedestal. Seeing him on The Cosby Show, listening to his comedy records, watching his stand-up comedic routines on cable or pay TV channels, I thought of him as a beautiful, upstanding family man who was a credit to our country. This week, Lordy, my opinion has certainly been shaken because the man many of us refer to as “Coz” has been named as a possible serial rapist by numerous radio, television, print and online sources. I understand that in our country every man is innocent until proven guilty; nevertheless, the accusations have been made, which means that the bloom is certainly off my Cosby rose until further notice.
4. For the last several years, I have found myself in a state of nearly constant task development and completion. While I’m at work I shift gears from one-on-one conversations, to creating advertising proposals, all the while checking emails and answering my cell phone. When I’m at home, I try to calm down and watch television or read, but I find myself getting up to check email, do a load of laundry, wash up the few dishes in the sink or make a phone call. Discussing this with my doctor, he decided I should be tested for attention deficit disorder (ADD). For quite a while, I’ve suspected that I have ADD, so I was anxious to take the test. Wednesday morning at 8am I went in for my testing and by 9am was informed that my test score was in the 98 percentile— in other words, no ADD. After receiving the non-diagnosis, I asked the attending doctor his opinion regarding my need to keep working all the time. His answer was a simple one— “You’ve forgotten how to relax.” So, after years of thinking I was “just ADD,” I have learned that I need to train myself to, in his words, “wind down.” Wow, that’s a pretty nice prescription, however it is going to take me a while to re-learn how to relax. Yep, once again, cognitive dissonance.
5. When Charles Manson was found guilty in 1971 of conspiracy to commit the murders of seven people, I wanted to believe that, while incarcerated, he would get a little of what was his due by living a lonely, sad, pathetic life out of the public spotlight that he had so come to love. Well, this week I learned, once again, I am way off base. It looks like some 26-year-old gal named Afton Burton in the near future plans to marry the 80-year-old psycho. And, according to an article in Wednesday’s New York Post, Manson’s future mother-in-law “shockingly” disapproves. Really? Are we really shocked to learn that this young woman’s mother would disapprove of this engagement made in Hell? Oy. Believe it or not, it looks as if this will not be Manson’s first marriage. I have done a bit of research and discovered that Miss Burton will indeed be Charlie’s third wife. Also, I found out that through the years he has fathered three children, with three different women— two of whom he married. Holy cow!
With the week nearly over, I seriously hope I don’t have any more additions to my “what the hell?” list. My head already feels a bit like a pinball machine whose tilt sensor has been activated. How was your week?
