Cognitive Dissonance Theory

Definition: Cognitive dissonance theory "refers to a situation involving conflicting attitudes, beliefs or behaviors. This produces a feeling of discomfort leading to an alteration in one of the attitudes, beliefs or behaviors to reduce the discomfort and restore balance." Source: McLeod, S. (2008). Cognitive Dissonance. Retrieved from http://www.simplypsychology.org/cognitive-dissonance.html

Application: Cognitive dissonance theory is important in the context of community development, both for the community developer and for the community they are working with so that they can recognize when they themselves or community members are struggling with conflicting attitudes, beliefs or behaviors and can address them accordingly. For example, a community member might refer to themselves as a social justice advocate but later make a racist remark to another community member, an issue that the community developer would want to address before moving forward. 

Adaptation: Cognitive dissonance theory could also be applied to political science. For example, a politician might have some political issues that are very important to them as they enter office but may be forced to act differently based on the political climate of the legislature, forcing them to find a way to reduce the discomfort of taking actions that are not truly in line with their beliefs.