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The relativity of consistency

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The Expression of Attitude

Part of the book series: Recent Research in Psychology ((PSYCHOLOGY))

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Abstract

Consistency is a familiar theme in social psychology, particularly in the theories of attitude organization developed in the ‘fifties and ‘sixties, (Abelson et al., 1968). These theories are all careful to point out that consistency is not a matter of formal logic, but of perceived implications between different elements. Osgood and Tannenbaum (1955, p.43) for instance, express the central tenet of their congruity theory in the following terms: “Changes in evaluation are always in the direction of increased congruity with the existing frame of reference”.

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© 1987 Springer-Verlag New York Inc.

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Eiser, J.R. (1987). The relativity of consistency. In: The Expression of Attitude. Recent Research in Psychology. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-4794-4_5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-4794-4_5

  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-0-387-96562-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4612-4794-4

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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