Source: freepik.es
For Festinger it is possible to change beliefs and attitudes with the right stimulus, in this case a person can think that something wrong is right and vice versa if an idea or thought is introduced that leads him to convince himself of it. This theory of induced self-deception is applied from the communicative process between people, and it is here that I will explain why used as a strategy this cognitive dissonance is capable of destroying the most solid companies and organisations.
There are many ways of using cognitive dissonance, but the one I want to explain today is the one that through communication leads to the collapse of organisations. Organisations are made up of the people who make life in it from the different roles and positions they hold within it, from the theories of organisational behaviour it can be affirmed that communication is a basic and indispensable process that facilitates the creation of bonds between the members of the organisation.
Now, in the business world, sometimes (more than it should be) there are organisations that are in charge of destroying others that they consider to be a threat to their stability or growth in the market, and one of the strategies they use is cognitive dissonance by inducing a concept, thought or idea that goes against what is the organisational balance. How do they do this? The first is to look for something (be it a process, guideline, rule, regulation, etc.) within the group of people that make up the organisation, which they consider a threat, and point out that what is happening is contradictory to the mission and vision of the institution and that instead of benefiting its members it is leading them to failure.
Source: freepik.es
The deception is constructed as a justification for the benefit of the people who make up the organisation, when in reality the aim is the collapse of the organisation, because it is considered a threat in the market for others who are dedicated to the same area or service provision, it is then when the change in the thinking of its members, who end up being convinced that what was right before is now wrong and what was in their favour is now against them, destroys the balance and leads to the bankruptcy of the company. This is especially true for growing organisations with highly qualified staff who pose a direct threat to others in the same market line who do not feel able to compete fairly with what they have and must resort to destructive strategies.
Parameters are then set to convince members, firstly that management manipulates income or that they are exploited, that they may be better off in other organisations, that the founding principles are not right, and so on and so forth, to construct a lie (a stimulus) to change behaviour. This will cause the members of the organisation to start having problems with each other and where once harmony reigned, it becomes a battlefield.
Another purpose of this strategy used in a negative way is to distract the competition so much that they forget to do the job as they have been doing it, which translates into loss of income and is reflected in the organisation's liquidity and financial solvency. But how can we prevent, combat or reverse this strategy? From the following:
1.- If you feel good and comfortable in your organisation, turn a deaf ear to the comments of external agents.
2.- Do your work as you have always done it with quality and style.
3.- Increase communication with the organisation's management.
4.- Embrace the principles, values, mission, vision, objectives and goals of the organisation to which you belong.
5.- Commit yourself to the growth of the members of the organisation by supporting with your talent those who require your help at any time.
6.- Do not let yourself be carried away by negative feelings, remember that those who wish to destroy you will aim at your failure and will use any resource to do so.
7.- Finally, keep your energy positive, all successful and flourishing organisations go through crises because of unhealthy competition, the most important thing is not to get carried away by negativity.
Hello @emimoronIn social psychology, the theory of cognitive dissonance proposes that people possess a motivational drive to minimize imbalance by altering their perceptions or adding new ones to create a consistent system of values and beliefs, or alternatively by reducing the importance of some of the dissonant elements. Nice post success
Certainly, and depending on the use we make of this theory, it can be used for or against, as in marketing it is used to convince people through advertising which products that can affect their health are the ones they should buy. Thanks for reading
Hi @emimoron
Using this strategy to harm an organization can produce devastating results if it is not fightd on time and exposed with members of the organization.
Excellent article, congratulations!
Have a great day!
Regards.
If that is the purpose in a negative way, then members of organisations can detect when they are falling for a hoax. Thank you for reading my post.
Hello @emimoron, very interesting topic of your post.
The use of cognitive dissonance to create imbalance or noise in organizations unfortunately happens in different ways. Thanks for sharing some of ways to prevent it.
Cheers