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A Cognitive Dissonance Analysis Of Conformity Behavior, As Applied To The full Denture Patient

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A Cognitive Dissonance Analysis Of Conformity Behavior, As Applied To The full Denture Patient

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Content 71-27,925 HIRSCH, Barry Todd, 1940- A COGNITIVE DISSONANCE ANALYSIS OF CONFORMITY BEHAVIOR, AS APPLIED TO THE FULL DENTURE PATIENT. University of Southern California, Ph.D., 1971 Psychology, clinical University Microfilms, A XEROXCompany , Ann Arbor, Michigan <© Copyright by BARRY TODD HIRSCH 1971 THIS DISSERTATION HAS BEEN MICROFILMED EXACTLY AS RECEIVED A COGNITIVE DISSONANCE ANALYSIS OF CONFORMITY BEHAVIOR, AS APPLIED TO THE FULL DENTURE PATIENT by Barry Todd Hirsch A Dissertation Presented to the FACULTY OF THE GRADUATE SCHOOL UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY (Psychology) February 1971 UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA T H E G R A D U A T E S C H O O L U N IV E R S IT Y P A R K LO S A N G E L E S , C A L IF O R N IA 9 0 0 0 7 This dissertation, written by ...........Earrx.lo^...Hirsch........... under the direction of h.%3..... Dissertation Com mittee, and approved by all its members, has been presented to and accepted by The Gradu ate School, in partial fulfillment of require ments of the degree of D O C T O R O F P H IL O S O P H Y f In Dean Th Date..!, eferua ry_ 19 7.1. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS t I f I am deeply pleased to acknowledge my indebtedness \ \ to Dr. Norman Tiber for emotional and intellectual support | of my efforts. His knowledge and setting of deadlines I greatly assisted the completion of my work. Dr. Bernard | |Levin was responsible for the aid and co-operation of par- j Iticipants in this study, as well as the contribution of | lintellectual and technical information inherent in the i [ 1 |successful completion of this project. Dr. Seymour Levitan; |offered many constructive and helpful suggestions as well j las warmth and support, for which I am very grateful. Dr. i i I ! jMilton Wolpin offered many critically constructive and helpful comments throughout this undertaking. A grant from; the University of Southern California Dental School made ! i available the material utilized in this study, as well as > i computer facilities. I j My wife, Marilyn, deserves my greatest thanks. Her |tolerance and support never ceased, even when I had grave doubts. I do not believe that any other woman could have put up with me during a period which often seemed intermi- j i nable. Our son, Kevin, has a wonderful mother. I TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES Chapter I. INTRODUCTION .............................. Conformity The Experimental Situation The Experimental Situation and the Full Denture Patient Social Conditions and the Full Denture Patient Individual Differences Individual Differences and the Full Denture Patient The California F Scale Prediction of Conformity Factors which Affect the Predictive Validity of the F-Scale Cognitive Dissonance Experimental Designs of Cognitive Dissonance Studies Historical Perspective Theoretical Formulation Modes of Dissonance Reduction Cognitive Elements Degree of Discrepancy Positive and Negative Elements of the Chosen and Unchosen Alternatives Importance of the Cognitive Elements Amount of Pressure Applied to Obtain Conformity in Dissonance Experiments The Relationship of Conformity and Cognitive Dissonance II. METHOD ..................................... Design Hypotheses Chapter III. PROCEDURE .............. IV. RESULTS................ V. DISCUSSION ........... Aesthetic Preference Conformity Cognitive Dissonance The California F Scale VI. SUMMARY................ LIST OF REFERENCES ........... APPENDIX LIST OF TABLES Page Reliability Studies Reviewed .................. 29 Variables Affecting the Probability of Occurrence of Conformity ..................... 48 Summary of Analysis of Variance of Subjectsr Initial Ratings of the Four Types of Dentures........................... 66 Duncan’s Multiple Range Test as Applied to the Analysis of Variance of the Subjects’ Initial Ratings of the Dentures ........... 67 Summary of Analysis of Variance of Dentists’ Initial Ratings of the Four Types of Dentures........................... 69 Correlations Between Subjects* and Dentists* Initial Rating of Types of Dentures....................................... 70 Summary of Analysis of Variance of Subjects* Post-Pre Difference Ratings of the Dentures Received According to the Subjects* Initial Choice ................ 72 Duncan’s Multiple Range Test as Applied to the Analysis of Variance of the Subjects* Difference Ratings of the Dentures Received According to the Subjects’ Initial Choice ................................ 73 Mean Subject Difference Rating of Dentures as a Function of which Initial Choice the Subject Received ......................... 74 Summary of Analysis of Variance of Dentists* Post-Pre Difference Ratings for Each Type of Denture Subjects Received ... 76 v Table PaSe 11. Correlations Between Subjects1 and Dentists1 Final Ratings of Types of Dentures ............................. ..... 77 12. Summary of Analysis of Variance of Dentists1 Pre-rating of Expected Difficulty in Fitting Subjects with Denture as a Function of which Choice of Dentures the Subject would Receive ......... 79 13. Summary of Analysis of Variance of Dentists1 Post-Pre Difference Ratings of the Degree of Difficulty in Fitting Subjects with Dentures According to which Choice the Subject Received ......... 80 14. Summary of Analysis of Variance of Number of Subject-initiated Contacts for Subjects1 Four Choices ....................... 82 15. Summary of Analysis of Variance of Number of Visits of Subject after Trial Wax Fitting for Four Choices..................... 83 16. Summary of Analysis of Variance of Number of Dentist-initiated Contacts with Subjects for Subjects* Four Choices .... 84 17. Summary of Analysis of Total Days from Trial Wax Fitting to Final Appointment for Subjects* Four Choices................... 85 18. Summary of Analysis of Variance of Days from Trial Wax to First Insertion of Regular Dentures for Subjects* Four Choices.................. 86 19. Summary of Analysis of Variance of Days from First Insertion of Regular Dentures to Final Appointment for Subjects* Four Choices........................................ 87 20. Summary of Analysis of Variance of Number of Days from Initial Contact with Subject to First Fitting of Trial Wax Dentures According to which Choice the Subject Received .............................. 88 Table Page 21. Summary of Analysis of Variance of Days from Initial Contact to Final Contact According to which Choice the Subject Received...................................... 90 22. Summary of Duncan*s Multiple Range Test as Applied to the Analysis of Variance I of Time from Initial Contact to Final ! Contact According to which Choice the j Subject Received 91 ! I I 23. Summary of Analysis of Variance of the j Length of Time the Subject Wears the Dentures Each Day as a Function of which Choice the Subject Received 92 ! i I 24. Distribution of SubjectsT F Scale Scores - j According to the Choice the Subject | Received 94 | 25. Distribution of Dentists* F Scale Scores i According to the Choice the Subject Received...................................... 95 j 26. Summary of Analysis of Variance of Subjects* F Scale Scores According to j the Choice of Dentures the Subject Received 96 I 27. Summary of Analysis of Variance of j Subjects* F Scale Score and the Dentists* F Scale Score using the | Post-Pre Difference Ratings of the Subject on the Type of Dentures they Received as the Dependent Measure......... 981 28. Summary of Analysis of Variance of Dentists* F Scale Score by the Choice of Dentures the Subject Received Using | the Post-Pre Difference Ratings of the i Subjects as the Dependent Measure......... 99i VI1 CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION Festinger’s Theory of Cognitive Dissonance (1957) was the initial publication of a new type of consistency theory. It described the means by which an individual achieves consistencies among his opinions, attitudes, and beliefs concerning himself or objects in his environment. It also postulated various concomitant behaviors. The ensuing thirteen years of research has pro vided multiple tests of this theory and refinements of the conditions for its applicability. What has been most grossly neglected in the research of this period is the relationship of personality variables to Cognitive Dissonance. ! Initially, Festinger (1957) speculated on indi vidual differences in tolerance for dissonance. Later, Rosen (1961) unsuccessfully attempted to relate risk-taking to dissonance arousal. Finally, Brehm and Cohen (1962) devoted six and one-half pages of their book to the I | difficulties of testing the relationships between personality variables and dissonance. 1 2 Many authors (Brehm and Cohen, 1962; Glasser, 1967; McGuire, 1966; and Singer, 1966) point out that the diffi culty in establishing this relationship is inherent in the present lack of direct measures of dissonance. In all research reviewed to date, dissonance is assessed via attempts at its reduction. This means that, in MacCorquodale and Meehl*s (1948) terminology, dissonance has the same intervening variable status as most personality variables. Thus, a relationship may exist between dissonance and a personality variable, but it is also possible that the personality variable is correlated with independent antecedent disso nance arousal factors and/or the dependent measures of attempts at dissonance reduction. With this state of affairs, it is presently impos sible to precisely state the type of relationship that exists between a selected variable and dissonance. What can be demonstrated is that a relationship exists between a given personality variable and dissonance. | Since there is almost no research available within i | this domain, the selection of a personality variable is unlimited. Rather than selecting a personality variable and designing an experiment to test its predictive preci sion, it is possible to gain utility by identifying a variable pertinent to a significant problem. 3 At the present time, the knowledge and problem solving orientation of psychology is being applied to many areas. One of the newest and most functional weldings is that of psychology and dentistry. Within the latter dis ciple, the specialization of prosthetics is confronted with an unsolved problem that affects multitudes. At the present time, the science of Dental Prosthetics is able to provide replacements for teeth lost through injury, disease, or neglect. It has been noted (Lefer, Pleasure and Rosenthal, 1962; Moulton, 1946) that a set of full dentures may be both technologically and I functionally extremely well-suited to an individual from the dentist’s viewpoint. Yet, the person will fail to accept these dentures. The lack of acceptance may be externalized via failure to utilize the dentures, frequent return trips to the dentist for adjustment of vague complaints, a direct request for major alteration, or refund. The procurement of full dentures involves large expenditures of time and money for the patient. It can also involve difficulties in eating, prolonged pain, and possibly infection. The dentist who is confronted with a j patient who rejects what would seem to be a suitable set of dentures may be confronted, at the very least, with a I | dissatisfied client. He may have to spend a great deal of j time making adjustments for vague discomforts, and in the 4 extreme case the dentures may have to be remolded. Clearly then, for both the dentist and his patient, a solution of this long-standing, unsolved problem would be of significant service. The following investigation will show that the above problem can be analyzed in terms of Conformity and Cognitive Dissonance. Conformity It is herein held that some full denture patients do not receive the aesthetic type of full denture setup that they would select in a free choice situation. Never theless, their initial response is to accept these dentures (i.e., they conform). It is a common observation that people do many similar things (Alport, 1934), but this may be attributed to a variety of factors. For instance, on a cold day I people wear coats. This is conformity behavior, but it also can be seen as a response to the demands of the i situation (Orne, 1962). With a variety of styles to choose from, the individual who wears the same style as the majority of others wear is conforming in a more explicit | manner. The focus of this study is on a subset of the i | latter general type of conformity behavior. Specifically, l j j when an individual engages in behavior which is in opposi tion to what he would ^freely” do, he is conforming. 5 Experimentally, the subject of a psychological conformity investigation is evaluated in some manner prior to his exposure to the experimental situation. The aspect of his behavior, which will be subjected to experimental manipula tion, is assessed as it exists at that time. He is then introduced to the experimental situation and variables are manipulated to obtain a different type of behavior. The crux of the conformity experimentation lies in the focus on the direction of change of the subject’s behavior. j j Hollander and Willis (1967) theoretically show that ! the S’s behavior can be delineated within the extremes of r ! conformity, independence, anti-conformity, and variability. The studies to be cited are those which are concerned with S’s conformity responses. The literature on this subject is so vast (Allen, 1965; Berg and Bass, 1962; Graham, 1962) that conclusions from a representative sampling of the experimental litera ture are utilized rather than a total coverage of all work on this topic within various disciplines. As the purpose of this study is to focus on a specific type of conformity and its consequences, the studies reviewed are further limited to this area. The variables, which are the main determinants of conformity behavior, have been divided into three areas, following the formulation of Berg and Bass (1962). Although the experimental situation, the social conditions within the experiment, and the characteristics 6 of the experimental subject are not seen as separate sets of factors, there has been a minimum amount of study con cerned with their interaction. Whenever there has been reliably verified interaction effects, these will be pointed out. The Experimental Situation The experimental situation obviously has a direct bearing on the type of conformity to be obtained. The pioneering work is that of Sherif (1935) and Asch (1951). Sherif has Ss observe a pinpoint of light in an otherwise darkened room. Lacking stimuli to anchor the j light, the subjects experienced it as moving. Balancing the order of presentation, Sherif has Ss judge the extent of movement of the Autokinetic Effect in individual and group judgment conditions. He found that a group standard of judgment of the direction and extent of movement was established, and it affected individuals’ judgments in the direction of concurrence with the mean group standard. This might be considered a factor of the experimental task which called for a single group judgment, but individuals did not have to agree with others. It was found that Ss did agree, and when individual Ss were tested they con tinued to adhere to the standards established in their groups. In 1951, Asch devised the method which has become 7 the classical mode to demonstrate conformity. He presented his subjects with tasks in which they had to match the length of a line with the appropriate one of a set of three other lines. The correct choice was obvious, yet one S suddenly found that the answers given by the rest of the group were consistent with each other and different than his own. This was the only "real1* S in the experiment, as the other participants were confederates of the experi menter. Approximately one-fourth of the Ss never conformed to the majority^ incorrect choices, but over one-third of the Ss conformed over 50 percent of the time. These studies demonstrate many things, but for the purposes of this review, they clearly show that one of the conditions necessary for conformity is the presence of stimuli and a related task. The four major classifica tions into which the stimuli-task can be subdivided (Berg and Bass, 1962) are: 1) perceptual judgments, 2) factual responses, 3) attitudes and opinions, and 4) overt i f ! behavior. I ! | In the autokinetic effect, the stimulus was a pinpoint of light in a darkened room. Asch (1951, 1956) i used straight black lines of different lengths. Crutch field (1955) used a variety of stimuli among which were geometric figures, which were to be equated by Ss on the basis of equal areas. Blake, Helson and Mouton (1956) used two groups of metronome clicks, which were to be judged on 8 the basis of similarity or difference. These and other researchers (Baron, 1952; Berger, 1963; Elender, 1965; Moeller and Applezweig, 1957; Mouton and Olmstead, 1956; Schroder and Hunt, 1958; Vidulick and Kaiman, 1965) were concerned with conformity responses that could occur with perceptual stimuli. I Questions of fact were utilized by Blake, Helson and Mouton (1956), Crutchfield (1955), Elender (1965), Elender and Hoy (1967) and Jennes (1932a, 1932b). The Ss in these experiments were asked to pick the correct answer to arithmetic problems, questions about obscure facts, or the number of beans in a jar. Representative stimuli and tasks in the third ; category are attitudes about war (Blake, Mouton and Helson, 1956), choosing the most desirable alternative to solve a designated social problem (Festinger and Thibaut, 1951), and questions about values that were determined to be important to Ss through the prior use of the Alport-Vernon Study of Values (Vaughan and Mangan, 1963). Within the last classification, Ss were induced to eat disliked vegetables (Brehm, 1960), give electric shocks to others who were actually confederates of the experi menter (Milgram, 1965), and violate red traffic lights after seeing confederates of the experimenter engage in that behavior (Lefkowitz, Blake and Mouton, 1955). Results of work with these categories of stimuli and tasks have shown that factually anchored materials appear to be most resistant to change due to conformity pressures. Also, those materials which elicit personal preferences or have high subjective personal value to the S are difficult to influence. In comparison, reactions that are given to non-personally important materials are much more subject to conformity pressures. At the present time, there is too little direct work on the conformity of overt ibehavior to make a definitive statement in that area. i I j The general types of outcomes stated above are I subject to the additional consideration of the ambiguity of I the stimulus material. Generally, as the ambiguity of the stimuli increase, the probability of conformity increases (Deutsch and Gerard, 1955; Hollander and Willis, 1967; j jLuchins, 1944; Raven and Rietsema, 1957). Thus, the work j of Blake, Helson and Mouton (1956) and Crutchfield (1955) i I ; indicate that there is a progressive increase in the number | i of Ss who conform as the correct answer becomes more j | difficult to determine. Other investigators (Asch, 1956; Berenda, 1950; Caylor, 1957; Fisher and Williams and Lubin, 1957; Kelley and Lamb, 1957; Weiner, Carpenter and i | Carpenter, 1956) have confirmed the correlated position l I ; that increasing conformity is inversely related to the 8*3 J certainty of the correct response. 10 Task demands are related to the ambiguity of the stimulus material and the difficulty of determining the correct response. The greater the demand for a response, especially a single group judgment, the more likely is a S to conform (Blake, Mouton and Hain, 1956; Freed, Chandler, Mouton and Blake, 1955; Rosenbaum, 1956). When the experi menter varies the instructions regarding the degree of unanimity desired, there are consequent changes in S*s conformity behavior (Blake, Mouton and Olmstead, 1956; Brehm and Festinger, 1957; Gerard, 1953). A request for a unanimous answer or indications from the experimenter that | there is a correct answer to tasks increases S*s conformity behavior. The overall results of consideration of the Experimental Situation suggest that conformity increases j with an increase in the ambiguity of the stimulus material. This is exemplified by conditions where the S*s lack of certainty of the correct response or task instruction indi- | cate there is a correct response will increase the amount i of conformity behavior. When subjects are dealing with material which has some personal subjective value, there is i | less likelihood of conformity, unless there is increased pressure in that direction. | The Experimental Situation and | the Full Denture Patient | Within the prosthedontic denture situation, the 11 stimuli are presented to the S in the form of photographs of various styles of teeth. Lefer, Pleasure and Rosenthal (1962) have shown that full dentures can be classified into four groups, which are easily differentiated by patients. The stimulus material is thus non-ambiguous. In addition, the choice the patient makes is one that is subjectively important. The need for dentures involves the expenditure of a large amount of money. The inconvenience and difficulty of needing functional teeth and doing without them during the fitting period also adds to the subjective value. Macgregor (1953) also adds another source of importance for the patient in her observation that: . . . what a person appears to be to others, and the impression he gives because of his looks . . . [may] cause the individual to be assigned a margin al or minority status, or both. (Macgregor, 1953, p. 64) In accord with physical appearance, one of the salient characteristics of how a person looks is what his teeth look like. Linn (1966) reported that a nationwide survey indicated a high degree of public concern with the importance of a good dental appearance. In one reported instance (Lefer, Pleasure and Rosenthal, 1962), an indi vidual who received dentures which he felt were not asthetically appropriate at first avoided displaying his teeth, and finally went to another dentist and obtained a new set of dentures. 12 The conclusions from review of the experimental factors related to conformity and the above analysis would seem to point toward a non-conforming choice by the full denture patient. Consideration of the probable task demands furnishes the rationale for the statement that some full denture patients do not receive the aesthetic type of full denture setup they would select in a free choice situation. The School of Dentogenics (Frush and Fisher, 1959) places the responsibility for the "correct selection" of dentures upon the dentist. Empirical verification (Lefer, Pleasure and Rosenthal, 1962) has shown that the dentist i l I |does not always select the same type of full denture setup i I . I the patient would choose for himself. Yet, this choice is j placed in the dentist’s hands and may even be in accord with his personality characteristics. Within this context, Evans (1967), in a review of the literature of social and behavioral sciences oriented toward the dental profession, concluded that Studies which assessed the personality character istics of dentists and dental students paint a decidedly authoritarian picture of these groups. (Evans, 1967, p. 1505) It is probably as ridiculous to say that all - dentists approach their patients in an authoritarian manner as it would be to say that all authoritarians are dentists. But, as previously stated, there is evidence 13 for conformity and resultant dissatisfaction. Some decisions are made by the professional in his interaction with the person seeking his services. The surgeon decides on the locus of an incision, while the psychotherapist may accept, reject or terminate his contact with a client. The dentist clearly makes a decision as to which teeth shall remain and which shall be extracted. The final choice, to accept or reject the judgmental-decision of the professional, usually resides with the patient. The probability of a person making the type of decision toward which he is being influenced goes up when ! the range of choices is not equally perceived by both l |parties (Sherif and Sherif, 1956; Wilkins and DeCharms, i |1962). In the dentist-patient relationship, there is I reason to suspect that both parties do not have equal knowledge or skill in the area in which the patient is seeking aid. This interpretation is certainly in accord with the patient seeking the services of a professional. There can be a greater or lesser degree of equality of knowledge. This would seem to depend, in part, on the i i dentist’s ability and willingness to communicate the alter- j | natives to the patient in a non-influential manner. As has | been noted above, the dentist has been found to be a j ! directive individual. i | ' Consideration of the above factors indicates that i j within the context of the experimental situation, there is probability both for and against conformity behavior. As noted above, not all persons or dental patients conform, thus consideration of social and personality variables relating to conforming may further clarify the situation. Social Conditions The experimental situation contains other factors which contribute to the likelihood of conformity responses. I These factors are considered under the general heading of i ! the social conditions of the experimental situation. More i specifically, reactions by a single individual or a group of individuals constitute the social conditions of the | experimental situation (Berg and Bass, 1962). Within the context of social conditions, knowledge of the reactions of others influences the behaviors of Ss in the direction of a higher probability of conformity. Conformity responses obtained with manipulation of the S’s knowledge of other’s response as the independent variable | are not limited to a particular type of task. S’s | responses to the expressions of attitudes and opinions (Duncker, 1938; Gordon, 1952; Horwitz, Piana, Goldman and Lee, 1955) and reactions to factual, perceptual and judg- I mental materials (Asch, 1951; Blake and Brehm, 1954; j | Munsterberger, 1950; Sherif, 1935) have been shown to move j j toward conformity due to either the awareness of the reac- i tions of others or efforts by the experimenter’s 15 confederates to influence the responses of Ss. In the experimental paradigm related to the latter situation, the others present in the situation give incorrect responses with variations in the degree of unanimity in various sequential configurations about the S’s response. Individuals have been found to be less conforming when acting under conditions of personal anonymity than when the design requires them to reveal who they are, what their response is, or both (Asch, 1956; Deutsch and Gerard, 1955). In addition, when a S makes a definite commitment i to a position or response prior to receiving pressure to conform, he maintains his position even more persistently j than when the experimental situation does not require a |prior commitment (Deutsch and Gerard, 1955; Fisher, jRubenstein and Freeman, 1956). ! j Various researchers (Asch, 1956; Goldberg, 1954; Hare, 1952) have found that progressively increasing the number of others present in the situation increases the j occurrence of conformity responses, although more than ! j three others seem to give no significant increase in con- j formity. | Studies of relationships between others present in ! the situation and the S have shown that when one or more i j others in the situation have a higher status than the S, he I ! is more likely to conform to their responses (Cole, 1955; Lefkowitz, Blake and Mouton, 1955; Raven and French, 1958). 16 Experiments designed to evaluate the role of homogeneity among Ss in terms of ability, skill, and/or knowledge have failed to demonstrate a relationship between these factors and susceptibility to conformity pressure (Festinger, Gerard, Hymovitch, Kelly, and Raven, 1952; Festinger and Thibaut, 1951; Gerard, 1954). In this vein, the probability of a S making a response that is similar to those given by others increases as there is a decrease in the ability of Ss to perceive the |range of choices they have available (Sherif and Sherif, 1956; Wilkins and DeCharms, 1962). In addition, a disabil- |ity on the part of the S, relative to others present in the experimental situation, also increases the likelihood that the S will conform (Hallenbeck and Lundstedt, 1966; Wilkins and DeCharms, 1962). When the other members of the S’s group are not in unanimous agreement, S*s conformity behavior is signifi cantly decreased relative to conditions of unanimity (Asch,j | 1956; Hardy, 1957). The presence of a single, supportive j individual significantly reduces the amount of conformity j manifested by the subject, particularly for objective I stimulus material (Janis and Hovland, 1965). The amount of j 7 i i discrepancy between responses of the majority and the i i I responses given by the S, measured either by pretests or I via control groups, has a discontinuous relationship to | conformity. First, Ss move toward greater agreement with 17 others when the discrepancy is small. But, for large dis crepancies, there is a decrease in conformity, especially when the stimuli are attitudes and opinions that are important to the S (Asch, 1956; Festinger, Gerard, Hymevitch, Kelly, and Raven, 1952; Wittaker, 1958; Weiner, 1958). In summary, knowledge of others1 reactions induces conformity. Specifically, increases in group size, up to three persons, degree of agreement among others, and higher status of others increase the probability that a S will ! j conform. Lack of anonymity, whether through lack of prior | acquaintance or non-public responses, decrease the resist- | ance to conforming. Disability, lack of prior commitment, and small discrepancies between the S and others are fac tors which increase susceptibility to conformity. Social Conditions and the Full Denture Patient* j In the dyadic interaction for the procurement of i i full dentures, the participants are known to each other ! I and are together for an extensive period of time. As I previously stated, the aesthetic selection of dentures by I i | the dentist does not always coincide with the patient*s I j choice (Lefer, Pleasure, and Rosenthal, 1962). The degree i of difference between types of full denture setups is i | amenable to interval scaling and is to be considered in i this study. The services of the dentist are sought because of the disability of the patient- As Hallenbeck and Lundstedt (1966) explain: "Disability is a stress that tends to create helplessness, dependency, and frustration (p. 53)." The prospective full denture patient is certainly someone who is disabled and who will be even more incapaci tated during the period extending from the extraction of his teeth to the final fitting of his dentures. Consideration of the above factors relating to the social conditions of dentist-patient interaction strengthen the prediction that patients will conform to the aesthetic I choice made by the dentist. As indicated above, not all I j patients will conform. Thus, the final factor to be con sidered is the relation of individual differences to conformity. ! Individual Differences The final set of factors are the demographic and j |antecedent personality variables related to conformity, j In terms of demographic variables, there is mixed evidence on the susceptibility to conformity pressure as | related to sex differences (Crutchfield, 1955; Jennes, !1932a, 1932b; Luchins and Luchins, 1955; Willis and Hollander, 1964; Blake, Helson and Mouton, 1956; McDavid, j 1964). Mann’s (1959) review of the literature on the relationship between personality and performance in small 19 groups finds no conclusive basis for differences in suscep tibility to conformity as related to sex differences. In regard to the age of the S, it has generally been found that younger people are more responsive to conformity pres sures than are older subjects (Berenda, 1950; Duncker, 1938; Luchins and Luchins, 1955). Psychological variables, which are assumed to exist prior to participation in the experimental situation, are the most frequent method of assessing individual differ ences. The instruments used in these studies have ranged I from specially constructed scales to tests that have been subjected to a great deal of validity and reliability research. Most tests have been used only once or twice, with the result that very little direct comparison is possible. Frequently, there is no validity daca available on a given test and results from more widely accepted instruments, such as the MMPI, are contradictory. Thus, at present, it is extremely difficult to establish a consis- ! tent relationship between other personality variables and j i conformity. ! | In terms of generalizations, results have tended to j | show that conformists are differentiated from non- ! j conformists in terms of being more submissive (Beloff, 1958; Berenda, 1950; Blake, Helson and Mouton, 1956; | Jennes, 1932a; Kelman, 1950), lower in self-confidence j (Bray, 1950; Kelman, 1950), score higher on authoritarian 20 scales (Beloff, 1958; Crutchfield, 1955; Hardy, 1957; Mellon and Simkins, 1957), less intelligent (Berenda, 1950; Crutchfield, 1951; 1953; Fisher, Rubenstein and Freeman, 1956; Jennes, 1932b; Nakamura, 1958), and less original (Baron, 1955; Crutchfield, 1951). They are also charac terized as lower in n-Ach (Krebs, 1958; Samuelson, 1957), higher in need for social approval (Moeller and Applezweig, 1957), and conventional in values (Beloff, 1958). In several investigations, it has been shown that subjects who conform in one situation also conform in others (Asch, 1956; Blake, Helson and Mouton, 1956; Crutchfield, 1955; Rosner, 1957). More recently, investi gations have focused on the interrelationship among personality factors and the type of conformity situation. McDavid (1964) has found that conformity to the unanimous judgment of peers in conformity situations, where the stimuli are objectively soluble, is related to timidity, deference to others, tendencies to avoid arguments or conflicts, and strong needs for approval and acceptance. In a later segment of the same study, McDavid found that subjects who conform to the unanimous judgments of peers on judgments of ambiguous stimuli are characterized as being deferent, dependent, trusting others, respecting others, displaying sex-role conventional deference, and persistent in seeking closure. 21 Individual Differences and the Pull Denture Patient It is obvious from the above review that personal ity factors are related to conformity, but different situations appear to be related to different psychological variables with no discernable clarity of the relationship of these variables to one another. Although this may be the result of assessment of a non-stable variable and different experimental and social situations, there is evidence of a trend toward conformity across situations. What has been most damaging to the study of conformity as a personality variable is the utilization of specially constructed scales that lack validity and reliability data. At the present time, it is extremely difficult to establish a consistent relationship between other personality vari ables and conformity. In terms of consideration of the personality of the full denture patient as it relates to conformity, there are no conclusive statements which can be i made at this point. I j The California F Scale j Prediction of Conformity j Although there is no general agreement as to the personality variables which are related to conformity, there is one instrument which is fairly consistent in determining this behavior on an a priori basis. This 22 instrument--the California F Scale— is an outgrowth of Fromm’s (1941) concept of the authoritarian personality. Fromm used the concept of the "authoritarian personality” to refer to the syndrome in which the individ ual enacted the role of an inhibiting authority rather than a rational authority. It was in this context that the term ’’authority” was transformed into a tentative synonym with "authoritarian,” which was refined in the work of Adorono, et al. (1950). These authors, in The Authoritarian Personality, attempted to provide a means for studying personality and ideology as an interacting process. The guiding and operating theory of their work was psychoana lytic. According to these researchers, one of their major findings was that Individuals who show extreme susceptibility to Fascist propaganda . . . exhibit numerous charac teristics that go together to form a syndrome . . . the Authoritarian Personality. (Adorono, et al., 1950, p. 1) In order to obtain objective mass measurement of tendencies toward what was proposed as the core of this personality structure--"the sado-masochistic personality”-- a scale named the Fascism Scale (F scale) was constructed. From its subsequent use in many research studies (Christie and Jahoda, 1954), the F scale has become the focus of a considerable amount of scrutiny and evaluation. Research has tended to show that there is a good measure of the probability of occurrence of conformity behavior in a 23 variety of experimental situations. The original F-scale was a Likert type scale com posed of twenty-nine items to which the subject responds using a six-point scale of agreement-disagreement. In the original study, the scale underwent several empirical and theoretical revisions. The final revision, identified as Form 40/45, contained thirty items in the same Likert type arrangement as the original scale. According to the original source, the major purpose of the scale was to quantify personality traits derived from psychoanalytic theory and group them together to form I a consistent and enduring syndrome pattern--the authoritar ian personality. The variables that Adorono, et al., con sidered as combining to form the syndrome of the authori tarian personality were: I. Conservatism II. Authoritarian submission III. Authoritarian aggression IV. Anti-introception V. Superstition VI. Power and toughness VII. Destructiveness and cynicism VIII. Projectivity IX. Concern about sex The authors assumed that the nine personality traits were related to each other in the following ways: The first three traits all have to do with moral aspects of life, with standards of conduct, with authorities who I enforce standards, and with offenders who violate them. It was expected that they should, in general, go together as 24 ,fall three can be understood as expressions of a particular kind of structure within the personality” (Adorono, et al., 1950, p. 234). An essential feature of the authoritarian person was held to be the failure of the individual to integrate the moral agencies of his life with the rest of his person ality. This feature was said to be due to ego weakness, and this anti-integrative trend is proportedly reflected on traits IV, V and VI. The remaining traits are expressions of the projective tendencies thought to be characteristic of the authoritarian personality as being marked by an externalized super-ego, a weak ego, and a general tendency to project outward his own unacceptable feelings and impulses. The nine traits listed above were thought to be manifestations of these characteristics and are thought of as going together to form a single syndrome, "a more or less enduring structure in the person” (Adorono, et al., 1950, p. 228). i | Although the theory clearly involved several dimen sions, the authors regarded the authoritarian personality as a single, unitary structure, and considered it meaning ful to think of subjects as having more or less of this personality structure. Thus, while nine personality traits were important to the construction of the F-scale, they were regarded as indistinguishable in the empirical setting of the instrument. Their common content, deriving from 25 being aspects of the same conceptual personality type, was believed to be the dominant element determining responses to the F-scale. An individual’s responses to the F-scale items were, therefore, simply added together to yield a single number indicating the subject’s degree of tendency toward the authoritarian personality structure. Thus, the higher the score on the F-scale, the more authoritarian the individual. To support this practice, the authors reported evidence in the form of item-to-item correlations computed on a sample of 517 college women. They found that items intended to measure any one of the personality traits cor related no better with each other than they did with numer ous items taken from clusters of items designed to measure other variables on the scale. The correlations ranged from -.05 to .44, with an average value of .13 (Adorono, et al., 1950, p. 261). That was taken as "proof that the variables or groups of items used in thinking about the F scale are not clusters in the statistical sense" (Adorono, et al., 1950, p. 262). Thus, the orientation was a typological one. The person may have a greater or lesser degree of this type, but not more or less of the traits underlying it. There was some attempt at avoidance of the strict categorization of type definitions through this method of linking degree I i of type to F-scale scores. 26 In the course of research utilization of the F- scale, what has emerged is that it is a fairly good measure of the individual’s tendency to conform in a variety of situations (Christie and Hahoda, 1954; Hardy, 1967; Hoffman, 1957; Lefkowitz, Blake and Moulton, 1955; Mann, 1959; Nadler, 1959; Small and Campbell, 1960; Smith, Murphy and Wheeler, 1964; Weatherly, 1964). Thus, the individual who obtains a high score on the F-scale is one who is submis sive in a wide range of situations. Whether or not one accepts the psychoanalytic model and the accompanying type definition is an individualistic decision. Tests can be constructed on a theoretical basis and then empirically tested. They can also be empirically constructed and then theoretical explanations can be sought. What usually emerges as the criteria for the con tinued utilization of a test is dependent on a variety of factors. Usually one finds that in large part their con tinuation is dependent upon how reliable and valid the instrument is in measuring something, in addition to how much research has accumulated in relation to the instru ment. The thing which is being measured may or may not correspond to the theory upon which a given instrument is originally derived. The F-scale is based on the psychoanalytic concep- j tualization of inadequate resolution of the Oediepal conflict leading to sado-masochistic tendencies, which then _ _ _ _ leads to the superstructure of the authoritarian personal ity. As has been noted above, this theory can be accepted or rejected. What is of major importance is that a great deal of research has shown that the F-scale does measure a consistent behavioral tendency, e.g., conformity. Factors which Affect the Predictive Validity of the F-scafi" A major criticism of the F-scale has been used to explain why the correlations between that instrument and conformity behavior are not higher. This explanation emerged from a study of the F- scale itself. A methodological criticism, stemming from Rundquist (1940) and Chronbach^ (1942) observation that people tend to agree with test items that are positively worded, whether or not they are in fact really true in regard to the individual, was cited as an inherent flaw in the F-scale. All of the F-scale items are positively worded. This leads to agreement with positively worded items yielding a higher F-scale score. Thus, in line with ■ Rundquist and Chronbach’s reasoning, any tendency for a \ person to be acquiescent would contribute to a high F-scale score. This acquiescent response set would, it was reas oned, possibly lead to illogical interpretations of the results and low validity for an instrument. An acquiescent response set was found to be operating as a factor in the 28 F-scale (Bass, 1955; Carey, Rogow and Farrell, 1957; Chapman and Bock, 1958; Chapman and Campbell, 1957, 1959; Cohn, 1956; Jackson and Messick, 1967; Leavitt, 1958; Messick and Frederikson, 1958). The general method used in these studies was to give the original F-scale items (F+ scale) and a reversal of those items (F- scale) to subjects and note the resulting correlations. For example, the original F+ scale statement was phrased as; “Someday it will probably be shown that astrology can explain alot of things." The F- scale state ment would be something that was phrased along the lines !of: “Astrology will never explain anything." I Acquiesence is defined by the correlation between the number of positive responses on the F+ scale and the number of negative responses on matched F- items. The assumption underlying this methodology is that the subject should maintain consistent responses to the content of the items from one form of the test to the other if he were j uninfluenced by an acquiescent response set. Thus, the higher the correlation the greater the acquiescent response set. i ! The main methodological problem (Christie and i j Jahoda, 1957) that was found with these studies is that sometimes authors did not take care that the original and reversed items still had the same meaning. Berkowitz and Wolkon (1964) presented the table reproduced below (Table 3) TABLE 1 RELIABILITY STUDIES REVIEWED Scale Chapman and Block Mogar Berkowitz and Wolkon F+ . 692 .532 . 712 .52 .60 . 694 -- .71 F- .41 .41 .42 .43 .773 -- .42 -- .61 .59 .40 Correlation of F+ & F- .17 -.01 .29 .05 -.35 .17 .19 .25 .18 -.14 -.16 2. Kuder-Richardson "Formula 20" reliability 3. Spearman-Brown corrected 4. Correlation with other positive items 5. Test-retest reliability 30 and noted that These correlations, representative of those found in the literature, based on several different sets of reversals, clearly indicate that F+ and F- do not reasure the same thing. . . . In addition it should be noted that the reliability of the F- items are lower than those of the F*. (Christie and Jahoda, 1957, p. 58) Thus, it may be seen that although there is strong evidence for an acquiescent response set as a factor in the F+ scale, it would seem that F+ and F- are scales measuring different things. In terms of conformity, the acquiescent response set may prove to be an additional factor, inherent in the F scale construction, which will aid in the prediction of this type of behavior. Chronbach (1946, 1950) held that response sets can lead to errors in the logical validity of tests, but they may also indicate significant and lasting response tendencies. He went on to indicate that these sets may have a stable and valid component which reflects a consistent individual style or personality trait. Thus far, there have been no definitive studies relating acqui escent response set to overt conformity, but logically a I positive relationship may exist. It can be seen that the i | acquiescents of the individual on a paper and pencil type i I test and conformity in other situations may be related. As i ! | Zuckerman and Eisen (1962) note i . . . the authoritarian is a . . . yes-man. In the original F scale both tendencies work together in the same direction and thus enhance the validity of 31 the scale. (Zuckerman and Eisen, 1962, p. 98) Another factor, which has not received considera tion in the literature on the F scale, is that in the overwhelming majority of studies relating F scale score to conformity all subjects were used. Thus, various researchers split their groups on the basis of the mean or median score for the total group. This has the effect of including what can be considered to be the mid-portion of the group. If Adorono, et al. , reasoning was correct, then the higher the score on the F scale, the more authoritarian j is the individual, and thus the more susceptible to con- I formity pressures. Unfortunately, there has been no work relating the amount of conformity to degree of extremeness on the F scale. It would seem that the majority of psychological phenomena exist within a range or degree rather than in a docotomy. Following this logic, the splitting of subjects on the basis of either the test or subject populations1 mean or median score preserves the number of subjects which a given design may necessitate, but it may also serve to decrease the between-group variability (Kerlinger, 1966, pp. 200-206). Thus, the effect of the variable of con formity would be less likely to be detected. In given experimental situations, the choice of eliminating a seg ment of subjects may, in part, depend on how many extreme scoring subjects are available. By performing an analysis 32 on the total subject population and then a secondary analy sis, if possible, on the upper and lower quartiles of the subjects' scores the problem of using the mid-range may be dealt with. Cognitive Dissonance It was stated above that some full denture patients do not receive the aesthetic type of full denture setup that they would select in a free-choice situation. Never theless, the initial response of the majority of patients is to accept these dentures (i.e., they conform). Many studies have shown that conformity is a per sistent individual characteristic, but few investigations have been concerned with the subsequent effects of initial conformity. In order to analyze the subsequent behavior, a post facto theory is needed. This formulation is found in Festinger's (1957) theory of Cognitive Dissonance. Experimental Designs of Cognitive Dissonance Studies The experimental literature on dissonance concerns itself with three general types of investigations. In the "informal exposure" studies, the S is allowed access to information which contradicts his present information or expectation. Next is the "free choice" investigations in jwhich the S makes a choice between various alternatives. Within these studies, the S's choice is made on the basis 33 of the relatively greater attraction of the chosen alterna tive. In the last research paradigm, "forced-compliance," the S is induced to do something he would not have done voluntarily. It is this last subset of dissonance research that is the focus of this section of the literature review. Historical Perspective The theory of Cognitive Dissonance is a relatively recent, specific form of consistency theory. This view point is antedated by Balance Theory (Heider, 1946) and its extention, Congruity Theory (Osgood and Tannenbaum, 1955), as well as the notion of "Symmetry" (Newcomb, 1953, 1956). All three concepts assume cognitive inconsistency to be a painful, or at least psychologically uncomfortable, state, but they differ as to their points of applicability and generality. The most specific theory, and the most restrictive, is that of Congruity. It confines itself to the problem of the effects of information about objects and events on the predisposition to respond to the communicator of that information. The notions of Balance and Symmetry deal with I attitudes toward people and objects in relation to one another. In the case of Newcomb:s (1953) "strain toward symmetry," this relationship exists among a group of indi viduals. Heider's (1946) theory of balance specifies the 34 relationship that exists within an individual’s cognitive structure. Neither theory is specifically pre- or post- decisional - The theory with the most general applicability and extensive empirical research is that of Cognitive Disso nance. It is concerned with intrapersonal consistency among any cognitions and is specifically post-decisional (Festinger, 1957). It is thus in accord with efforts toward predicting the effects of conformity for the full denture patient. Theoretical Formulation The basic hypothesis upon which FestingerTs (1957) ! ! theory is based is that The existence of dissonance, being psychologically uncomfortable, will motivate the person to try to reduce the dissonance and achieve consonance. (Festinger, 1957, p. 3) Dissonance and consonance are terms which Festinger adopted to avoid the surplus meaning which he felt was attached to the words '’inconsistency" and "consistency." Thus, the above hypothesis could be changed to read: Individuals try to reduce inconsistencies among their cognitions. I Cognitions are defined in terms of knowledge or information about oneself or one’s environment (Festinger, 1961). With this type of formulation, it is possible to assume that even rats have cognitions. Thus, 35 experimentation with these organisms has shown that they exhibit different responses under different conditions in accord with the formulations of Dissonance theory (Lawrence and Festinger, 1962). From Festinger1s viewpoint, if the organism changes its behavior when the stimulus conditions change, then it can be said to be using information about its environment and, therefore, is said to have cognitions. Each specific cognition is referred to as an "element” or piece of knowledge or information. Obviously, an individual can have many different cognitive elements. But, they can only exist in three types of relationships with one another. Simplifying the discussion to the consideration of two elements, these may or may not fit together, or they may have no relationship with each other. When the ele ments fit together, they are termed consonant. That is, when element A implies element B, they are consonant. When two elements are in opposition, e.g., if A implies B, and element B is actually the obverse of that implied by A, then the elements do not fit, or in FestingerTs term, they are dissonant. Elements which have no relationship to one another are termed irrelevant. An example may clarify what is meant. If a full denture patient would like to have denture setup A in his mouth, but has denture setup B, liking A and having B is dissonant. The patient then must find some way of reducing 36 this dissonance. Modes of Dissonance Reduction Dissonance theorists have been unable to precisely predict all modes which will be utilized to reduce disso nance. Typically, researchers have tried to close off modes on an a priori or a posteriori basis. A priori blockage (Festinger and Carlsmith, 1959) allows the study to be criticized via alternative explanations. In addition, the experimental conditions set up for a priori blockage are so complex as to make the study unreplicable (Rosenberg, 1965). A posteriori blockage is accomplished via elimina- i tion of subjects who seem to use modes other than the ones under study (Festinger, 1957, pp. 211ff.). This methodol ogy opens the research to charges of selection of evidence and imposes severe limitations on the generalization of j i results (Chapanis and Chapanis, 1964). Given this state of affairs, it is still possible to make some statements about modes of dissonance reduc tion. Given the fact that an individual has already engaged in some behavior, or made a choice, it is difficult to change that behavior or choice in many situations. It is much more frequent and easier (Cohen, Brehm and Fleming, 1958; Mills, 1958; Weick, 1967) to justify the 37 discrepancy by changing cognitive elements so that they are more in accord with the present situation. Following Brehm and Cohen’s (1964, pp. 307-309) summarization, dissonance reduction can occur by: 1) Changes in the evaluation of the behavior or choices via changes in: a) liking for persons (Allyn and Festinger, 1961; Davis and Jones, 1960; Steiner, 1960; Steiner and Peters, 1958; Steiner and Rogers, 1963), b) attraction to groups (Aronson and Mills, 1959; Gerard, 1961), c) devaluation of the unchosen alternative (Aronson and Carlsmith, 1962; Brock, 1965; Brehm and Cohen, 1959; Steiner and Rogers, 1963), d) increased evaluation of activities for which the S had to expend extra effort to attain (Adams and Jacobson, 1964; Aronson and Mills, 1959; Brehm, 1964; Brehm and Cohen, 1959; Cohen and Brehm, 1964; Festinger, 1961; Festinger and Carlsmith, 1959; Levanthal and Brehm, 1964; Yaryan and Festinger, 1961; Weick, 1964), e) increased preferences for choices that were _____________ previously disliked (Brehm, 1959, 1960; 38 Brock, 1965; Carlsmith and Aronson, 1961; Deutsch, Krauss and Roseau, 1964), f) decreased evaluation of states of physio logical discomfort with some accompanying decrease in physiological measures of these states (Brehm, 1964; Brock and Buss, 1965; Brehm, Bach and Bogdonoff, 1964; Zimbardo, 1961); 2) Avoidance of information which would increase dissonance and seeking information which would reduce dissonance (Adams, 1961; Cohen, Brehm and Latane, 1959; Ehrlich, Guttman, Schonbach and Mills, 1957; Festinger, 1957; Mills, Aronson and Robinson, 1959; Rosen, 1961); 3) Under-recall of discrepant information (Asch, 1956; Brehm, 1964; Steiner and Rogers, 1963; Weiner, 1959); 4) Increased judgments of the amount of pressure applied (Brock and Buss, 1965; Cohen, 1964; Cohen and Zimbardo, 1964); 5) Perceptual distortion (Bramel, 1962); 6) Changing future behavior to be in accord with past expectancies (Adams and Rosenberg, 1962; Aronson and Carlsmith, 1962; Cohen, Brehm and Latane, 1959; Cohen and Zimbardo, 1964); 39 7) Changing private beliefs so that they are more in accord with public behavior (Adams and Rosenbaum, 1962; Adams and Jacobson, 1964; Brehm, 1960; Cohen, 1960; Cohen, Brehm and Fleming, 1958; Festinger, 1961; Hovland and Pritzker, 1957; Mills, 1958; Rosenbaum and Franc, 1960; Ward and Carlson, 1964; Weick, 1964). In terms of an overall consideration of modes of dissonance reduction, Steiner and Rogers (1963) and Weick (1967) point out that it is possible for the same subject !to use more than one mode of dissonance reduction at the same time. The former authors have also indicated an interesting line of research that, so far, has not been j empirically followed up. They state that when an individual can use several modes of dissonance reduction, different subjects may use different means of achieving this end. These subjects may also concentrate on one means to the exclusion of others. The different modes of utilization may be governed by j earlier experiences with dissonance, and subjects may thus establish a hierarchy of dissonance reduction modes. If j j this is a correct analysis, then the chosen method of I ! reducing dissonance may vary across individuals and within the same individual in different situations. If this theory is valid, then a priori or a posteriori blockage of 40 modes of dissonance reduction is not a productive methodol ogy- Finally, the work of Walster, Berscheid and Barclay (1967) points out that if there is no attempt to block off any mode of dissonance reduction, Ss will seek out modes of reduction that are not challanged by present events and information and that are unlikely to come into conflict with the knowledge they have of the probability of occur rence of future events or situations. The above considerations fit in with the formula tions of the arousal of dissonance in that each occasion in which the SsT opinions, attitudes, judgments, or behavior conflict with existing cognitive elements is a source of further dissonance arousal. Since the major modes of dissonance reduction are via changes in cognitive elements, it is appropriate to turn to a review of this aspect of dissonance theory. | Cognitive Elements ! | In the forced-compliance experiments, dissonance is I a function of the number and/or importance of cognitions related to the different choice and the amount of pressure applied to obtain conformity. Thus, following Brehm and | | Cohen’s (1964) analysis, the dissonance arousal variables i j will be analyzed in terms of 1) the degree of discrepancy, 2) positive and negative cognitive elements of the chosen 41 and unchosen alternatives, 3) the importance of the ele ments, and 4) the amount of pressure used to obtain con formity. Results from all types of dissonance experimenta tion will be used to discuss these variables as there is no reason to believe they would not apply to the forced- compliance paradigm (Brehm and Cohen, 1964). Degree of Discrepancy Zimbardo (1960) led pairs of friends to think they disagreed alot or a little in their judgments on a case I study of juvenile delinquency. Using an exposure type of design, he found that the amount of change of the attitudes and opinions of each member of the dyad toward that of the partner*s position was directly proportional to the amount of discrepancy between the two positions. Cohen^ (1962) work indicates that there are limitations to this effect. He found that when the degree of discrepancy is too large l and it is not possible to change cognitive elements due to jthe lack of ambiguity of reality to which they correspond, the original position may be more closely adhered to rather than abandoned. In both experiments, the greater the degree of importance of the attitudes and opinions, the more crucial I I i was the degree of discrepancy in determining if change i i occurred. 42 Positive and Negative Elements of the Chosen and Unchoseri Alternatives Within free-choice and exposure experiments, the chosen alternative refers to that alternative the subject would choose of his own uninfluenced volition. For forced compliance experiments, the chosen alternative refers to the alternative the subject accepts due to various state- gies of influencing his behavior. Various experiments have consistently shown that the greater the number of positive cognitive elements associated with the chosen alternative, the smaller the magnitude of dissonance resulting from the choice. The relative number of positive elements has been evaluated in reference to the subject’s own performance expectancies (Aronson and Carlsmith, 1962), degree of justification for writing essays discrepant with the subject’s prior position (Brock and Blackwood, 1965; Cohen, Brehm and Fleming, 1958; Rabie, Brehm and Cohen, 1959) and different rates of pay for informing the next subject that a boring task was interesting (Festinger and Carlsmith, 1959). Experiments on the negative elements of the chosen alternative have reliably shown that as these increase the I ;post-choice dissonance also increases. Aronson (1961), Aronson and Mills (1959), Cohen (1959b), Yaryan and Festinger (1961) and Zimbardo (1961) all conducted experi ments in which subjects had to expend more effort than 43 controls to obtain their choices. These choices were later found by the subjects to be less attractive than they were originally led to believe. Festinger (1957; replicated by Cohen, Brehm and Latane, 1959) arranged a card game so that the side the subject picked consistently lost. Brehm (1960a), Brock and Buss (1964), and Smith (1961) provided little justification for subjects engaging in behaviors to which they were initially opposed. Raven and Fishbein ! (1961) also got their subjects to engage in conformity behavior, eating grasshoppers. While the majority of the studies did not directly I |enhance the negative aspects of the chosen alternative, they attempted to minimize the external rationale for j engaging in the behavior. Thus, they attempted to block off modes of dissonance reduction which would involve de emphasis of the negative attributes. As a control on the increased negative elements of the chosen alternative, all of the above studies used an alternate condition where maximal justification was given for engaging in the con formity behavior. There are three studies which relate to the posi- I | tive elements of the unchosen alternative, but not in a | | direct manner. Erlich, Guttman and Mills (1957) found that i i ! new car owners tended to avoid reading ads about other I brands of cars. Brehm (1956) found that adults dealt with the dissonance created by rejecting an attractive 44 alternative by devaluating that alternative relative to the chosen alternative. Brehm and Cohen (1959a) found that the same thing occurred with children who had to choose between two dissimilar attractive toys. According to the formula tion of dissonance theory, this type of change is predicted as a mode of dissonance reduction when there are positive elements of the unchosen alternative. There is only one study found on the negative aspects of the unchosen alternative. Aronson and Carlsmith (1962) used admonitions to force the rejection of a desirable alternative. They found that under conditions of mild threat, children increased their negative cogni tions about the desired toy. This is in accord with dis sonance theory predictions derived from the hypothesis that the milder the external inducements used to obtain conform ity behavior, the greater the cognitive change. In this case, the cognitive change was devaluation of a previously desired toy. Importance of the Cognitive Elements In three experiments, dissonance has been shown to vary directly with the importance of the relevant cognitive elements. Zimbardo (1961) showed that members of dyads changed their opinions as a direct function of the impor tance of the dissonant elements. Deutsch, Krauss and Rosenau (1962) manipulated the variable of importance by 45 changing the subjectrs self-esteem. Their subjects were asked to give taste judgments, and half the subjects were supplied with information about the relationship between the ability to make fine taste discriminations and the ability to exercise good judgment in other areas. Their results clearly show that the degree of importance of the cognitive elements is directly related to the amount of dissonance arousal. In an experiment by Cohen, Brehm and Latane (1959), importance was varied by varying the degree of publicity attached to the subject*s performance. As importance was increased in this manner, experimental results indicated directly proportional increases in dis sonance. No method has been found to directly weight the importance of different cognitive elements. As with other factors relating to the cognitive elements, the effective ness of the variables is assessed via the experimental results which show varying degrees of attempts at disso nance reduction. i Amount of Pressure Applied to Obtain Conformity in Dissonance Experiments j ! The final variable of dissonance arousal to be considered is the amount of pressure applied in various dissonance situations to obtain conformity behavior. This has been a factor in all the studies reviewed thus far, but 46 it is here treated as a separate topic. In general, the results of studies dealing with this issue have had outcomes in accord with dissonance theory and opposite to those which would be predicted from learning theory. Cohen (cited in Brehm and Cohen, 1964) offered monetary rewards of fifty cents, one dollar, five dollars and ten dollars to subjects to write an essay against their private views on a current issue on a college campus. All subjects wrote the essay, but on post-tests it was found that the larger the reward the smaller was the actual jchange in the subjects* attitudes toward the position he J was asked to take. Brehm and Cohen (1959) had subjects participate in a boring, tedious task. Subjects were then asked to tell others, who were to participate in the task, that it was interesting and pleasant. The subjects were told that they could not be given any money for doing this but that other i subjects were being paid from one dollar to ten dollars to relate the requested information. The results of this study were non-significant but indicative of accord with i dissonance theory predictions- Thus, the greater the mag- I | nitude of difference between what the subject thought | j others were paid and his own non-reward condition, the more i i | the subjects came to actually rate the task as interesting and pleasant. 47 Pressure to participate in a dissonance experiment has also been manipulated in terms of the justification given the subject for conforming (Adams and Rosenbaum, 1962; Aronson and Carlsmith, 1962; Cohen, Brehm and Fleming; 1958; Cohen, Terry and Jones, 1959; Festinger and Carlsmith, 1959; Rabie, Brehm and Cohen, 1959). All these studies indicated that increases in external pressure are successful in obtaining the subjects’ compliance, but there is little dissonance arousal and little subsequent change in the subjects’ position toward the discrepant attitudes or opinions. The Relationship of Conformity and Cognitive Dissonance Under certain conditions, with some people, it is very easy to obtain conformity behavior. Within the pre ceding review of the literature on conformity behavior, the variables affecting this event are factors comprising the experimental situation, the social conditions of the exper iment, and individual differences among subjects. The review indicates the relationships set forth in Table 1 I between the effect a given variable has on the probability j of occurrence of conformity and its relationship to the probability of obtaining conformity in the selection of full dentures. Within Table 2, entries for the selection of full 48 TABLE 2 VARIABLES AFFECTING THE PROBABILITY OF OCCURRENCE OF CONFORMITY Effect a Variable has on Probability of Obtaining Conformity Behavior Increase Decrease Contribution of Variable to Probability of Obtaining Conformity in Selection of Full Dentures Factual Material Increase High subjective Personal value Decrease Ambiguity Decrease Indeterminant Correct Response Increase SubjectTs certainty of correct response Increase Personal Anonymity Increase Prior Commitment Decrease Limited perception of range of choices available Decrease Disability of subject relative to others Increase Small Discrepancy Increase Large Discrepancy Decrease Age Below 25 Increase F scale score 90 and above Increase F scale score below 90 Decrease TABLE 2 (CONTINUED) Effect a Variable has on Probability of Obtaining Conformity Behavior Increase Decrease Contribution of Variable to Probability of Obtaining Conformity in Selection of Full Dentures Unanimity of others1 responses Not Applicable Increases in Group Size Not Applicable dentures are based on the facts that the stimulus material is not factual in nature as it calls for a subjective aesthetic judgment of high importance to the subject. As has been shown, the four general types of full denture setups can be easily discriminated. Clearly, there is no objectively determinable correct response and, thus, the subject can have no objective certainty of a correct response. Withii. the dentist-patient interaction, the subject is not anonymous. In vivo, he may or may not have a defi nite type of denture setup in mind but, in the experimental situation, control is gained over this variable by having all subjects make a selection in a free-choice situation. All subjects will thus be aware of the range of choices available. Subjects will randomly receive their first, second, third or fourth choice of dentures. This means, in terms of the range of discrepancy, that there will be relative degrees of difference which can be statistically con trolled . The subject will be more disabled than the dentist. In addition, there will be a range of subjects1 ages and F scale scores. Due to the lack of experimentation, it is not i possible to state interaction effects or assign relative weights to the various variables within an experimental 51 situation. It would seem that the single, most important variable in determining the initial acceptance of the dentures is the disability of the subject. The subject, who initially refuses to accept the dentures, will have an even more prolonged period during which he will be disabled. The other factors, listed in Table 2, comprise the variables which will, in part, determine the behavior of the subject subsequent to the initial acceptance of the dentures. All variables in Table 2, with the exception of i I the subject's F scale score and age, are external determi- inants of conformity. As has been previously noted, a I I j subject may initially conform and then return to his initial position or choice. For the dental patient, this lack of conversion is manifested in failure to utilize the dentures, frequent return trips to the dentist for adjust ment of vague complaints, a direct request for major alteration or refund, or a post rating of the dentures that shows no significant change from the initial rating. The variables listed in Table 2 are viewed as the determinants of conformity. They represent the pressure toward obtaining this behavior. Some individuals are more i susceptible than others to the effects of these variables. As the experimental design holds all relevant conformity j ! variables at the same relative level for all subjects, some subjects will be found to be more susceptible to this 52 pressure than others. Susceptibility is determined in terms of F scale scores. The higher the score, the more suscepti ble is the individual to conformity pressures. The converse is also held to be true. Since each subject is working with a different dentist, he will be receiving relatively different pressures to conform. The higher the dentist’s F scale scores, the greater the conformity pressure exerted on the subject relative to that needed to obtain conformity. The litera ture on dissonance arousal in a forced choice situation indicates that the higher the pressure exerted on the {subject, above the minimum needed to obtain conformity, j | the lower the dissonance arousal. The relationship may not jbe directly predictable as the dentists themselves are I jbeing told which dentures they are to fit to their patients | within this study. Although there are many modalities for dissonance reduction, the literature indicates that the most likely changes are in cognitive elements related to the choice. jThis is even more likely when it is difficult or impossible to change the corresponding physical reality. Some subjects are so resistive to conformity pres sures that they will not have been subjected to enough pressure to conform. These subjects can be identified by their low F scale scores. They will initially accept the dentures to avoid prolonging their disability, but they_____ 53 will manifest rejection via frequent return trips to the dentist, failure to utilize the dentures, a direct request for alteration or a refund, and no change in their pre-post ratings of the various denture setups. In accord with the dissonance literature, these subjects have not experienced dissonance arousal, and thus there should be no change in their cognitive elements. They are responding to pressures for conformity, rather than to dissonance arousal. Their behaviors are reflections of resistance to conformity pres sures and do not show conversion. I CHAPTER II METHOD Design The purpose of the present investigation was to evaluate the relationship between conformity behavior and cognitive dissonance as manifested in the selection of full dentures. It was held that some full denture patients do not receive the aesthetic type of full denture setup they would select for themselves in a free choice situation. The subjects' behaviors were thus explained in terms of conformity. . The variables relating to conformity behavior in the selection of full dentures were divided into the experimental situation, the social conditions of the exper iment, and individual differences among subjects. It was predicted that initially all subjects would accept the full dentures given to them, whether or not they were in accord with their own initial selection. Non-acceptance should then be manifested via failure to utilize the dentures, frequent return trips to the dentist, a direct request for an alteration or refund, or a change in the post ratings of the various dentures. 54 55 Due to the effects of dissonance, some patients should come to prefer the dentures they were given more than the ones they selected for themselves. The subjects were divided into two groups in terms of the type of den tures they received and their predicted responses. Group A was composed of subjects who received their first choice of dentures. Group B was composed of subjects who received dentures that were not their first choice. Initial acceptance was defined by the subjectfs wearing the dentures outside of the University of Southern California Dental School on the first day the dentist permitted them to do so. Subsequent acceptance-rejection was defined by: 1) differences in the relative frequency of subject-initiated return trips to the dentist; 2) re quests for alterations of the aesthetic appearance of the dentures; and 3) changed ratings of the different types of dentures. Full denture patients were asked to rate the four types of denture setups according to how well they would prefer each type of full denture in their mouth. Subjects were then given the California F Scale and met with the dental student who would fit them with their full dentures. The type of denture the subjects received was randomly determined. After recording the date of the initial contact, a record was kept by the dentist for all subjects. It was to contain the number and reasons for 56 each contact between the subject and dentist. At least four weeks after the f i n a l contact with the dentist, each subject was contacted to ostensibly help the Dental School evaluate its services. The subject was asked a variety of cover questions and then asked how long he wore his dentures. Finally, he was asked to rerate his preferences for the different types of denture setups. Hypotheses I. Subjects have a preference for the type of denture they desire. II. All subjects will initially accept the dentures given to them, regardless of whether it is their first, second, third or last choice. III. Subjects in Group B will show a positive increase in their preference ratings for the dentures they obtain, with the amount of posi tive increase inversely related to the choice they receive. IV. Subjects in Group B will show a greater fre quency of self-initiated appointments with the dentist as compared with subjects in Group A. V. Subjects in Group B will show a greater fre quency of requests for alterations of the aesthetic appearance of the dentures than will subjects in Group A. VI. Low F scale scoring subjects will show a greater positive change in their ratings of the dentures they receive than will high F scale scoring subjects, with rating change being inversely related to F scale score within both groups. CHAPTER III PROCEDURE Each person coming to the University of Southern California School of Dentistry was evaluated by a dentist in the Oral Diagnosis Department. When the examining I dentist determined that the subject was in need of a set of full dentures, he informed the subject of this diagnosis and told him that the School’s standard fee was one hundred and sixty dollars ($160) for this service. Subjects wish ing to have the dentures made at the Dental School were then referred by the examining dentist to the Oral Roentgenology Department where a set of full mouth x-rays were obtained. After the x-rays were obtained, the subject’s chart was sent to the Assignment Office where they were randomly delegated to junior and senior dental j ! students. The experimenter’s assistant picked up the subject’s chart from the Assignment Office and notified the appropriate dental student that a new patient had been assigned to him. The dental student arranged for the subject’s first and subsequent appointments. The subject's first appointment was scheduled one-half hour before the 59 time the student wished to examine the patient. The studenl met the subject in the lobby of the Dental School and escorted him to an office where the experimenter*s assistant was awaiting the subject. The experimenter *s assistant thanked the dental student for bringing the subject to the office and after the dental student had left she said to the subject: Mr. , as you know you need a complete set of dentures. I would like to show you the dif ferent types of denture setups that are available. These pictures [the experimenter *s assistant pointed to the pictures of the denture setups] show the different types of teeth that can be fitted to your mouth. Please look at them for as long as you like so that you can decide how well you like | each of the different types of setups. i j After the subject had looked at the pictures for ! approximately one minute, the experimenter *s assistant said: Mr.__________ , you may continue to look at the pictures for as long as you need to select the type of dentures that you would like fitted to your mouth. When you have made a choice, I would like you to mark on this form [Form II] how well you like the different types of denture setups. The one that you rate the highest is the one that we The ability of subjects to discriminate among the various pictures of the four different types of denture setups was established during pilot work. Each picture was prepared in duplicate and subjects were presented with the eight pictures arranged in random order. They were asked to match those pictures which appeared to go together. Five subjects were able to match the four pairs of pictures with 100 percent accuracy. 60 will know you want fitted to your mouth. These instructions [the experimenter’s assistant pointed to the instructions at the top of the form] explain how to use the form. I will be glad to explain it further if you have any questions after you have read the instructions. If the subject asked any questions that were designed to obtain the preferential opinion of the experimenter’s assistant, the question was responded to by the experimenter’s assistant, saying one of the two follow ing phrases: I feel that you know best which type of dentures would look best in your mouth. I realize that this may be a difficult decision for you to make, but you know best. | The experimenter’s assistant answered any questions the subject had about how to complete Form II and waited for the subject to complete that form. The experimenter’s assistant collected the completed form from the subject and said to the subject: Before you leave, I would like to obtain your ideas about some questions that are being studied | at the Dental School, and some other information, j Here is the first form. [The experimenter’s I assistant gave the subject Form III, the F Scale.] The instructions are on the top of this form, and I will be happy to explain how to use it if the instructions are not clear. When the subject was finished with the F Scale, the | experimenter’s assistant collected it and gave the subject a brief personal information questionnaire (Form IV). The ! j experimenter’s assistant answered any questions the subject i j had about the procedure of completing the two forms, but if 61 the subject asked any questions designed to obtain the opinion of the experimenter’s assistant on the ’’correct” answers to either form, he was told: I realize it may be difficult for you to decide upon an answer, but the Dental School is really interested in your ideas. I was asked not to influ ence you by telling you anything about how to answer the questions. After the experimenter’s assistant collected both forms, she said to the subject: Thank you Mr. _________ f°r your time and help in filling out these forms. The dental student who will fit you with your dentures will meet you in the main lobby. You may have him paged by the receptionist if you do not see him. When the dental student completed his first exami nation of the subject, he came to the office of the experimenter’s assistant. The experimenter’s assistant gave the dental student a form (Form IX) for use in recording all contacts with the subject subsequent to the fitting of the trial wax dentures. At that time, the experimenter’s assistant also gave the dental student a form (Form VIII), which indicated the type of dentures the 2 student was to fit to the subject. The experimenter’s assistant used a table of random 2 The various types of denture setups are equally easy to fit into any subject’s mouth. The only differences among the denture setups was in the aesthetic appearance of the teeth (i.e., the shape, color, and size of the indi vidual teeth which were combined to make one of the four types of denture setups). ______ _ _ 62 assignments (Table 1) to determine whether the subject would receive his first, second, third or fourth choice of the type of denture setup he rated on his preference form (Form II). In the event that the subject either indicated no preference, or rated two or more setups equally, the experimenter’s assistant used a table of random assignments for equal ratings (Table II) to determine which setup the subject received. The dental student returned the record of contacts with the patient (Form IX) to the experimenter’s assistant after the last appointment with the subject. Approximately four weeks subsequent to the subject’s last appointment at ! the Dental School, the subject was contacted by the 3 experimenter’s second research assistant. The second experimenter’s assistant made the ini tial appointment with the subject via telephone. He said to each subject: Hello, this is Mr. Morrison, is Mr. __________ home? I am working with the University of Southern California’s School of Dentistry to obtain informa tion about the services the school has provided you. We are interested in improving the services the school offers, and I am contacting you since you have recently received a set of false teeth from the school. At what time would it be conveni ent for you to have me spend approximately ten (10) | minutes at your home so that I may ask you some 3 A second, separate assistant was used in this phase of the work in accord with Rosenthal’s (1966) criticisms of research within the cognitive Dissonance framework. 63 brief questions about the quality of services the school has provided for you. The second experimenterfs assistant set up an appointment time with the subject and answered any ques tions the subject had about the purpose of the interview. In responding to the subject’s questions, the second experimenter’s assistant was instructed to maintain the set that he was going to ask question which would be used to improve the services the Dental School offers. The second experimenter’s assistant asked the subject’s permission to record the conversation he was going to have with the subject, insuring confidentiality and the importance of the responses for improving the service of the Dental School. The second experimenter’s assistant asked the subject general questions about the services the school had provided, the dental student they had worked with, the amount of choice the subject felt they had in selecting the dentures given to them, any difficul ties the subject may have had in the course of obtaining his dentures, any difficulties the subject had in wearing the dentures, and anything else the subjects wished to relate about their relations with the Dental School or difficulties with their dentures. At the conclusion of this ten-minute interview, the second experimenter’s assistant asked the subject to fill out a post-experimental rating of the four types of dentures (Form XII) and a 64 specification of the amount of time the subject wore the dentures (Form XIII). In filling out Form XII, the second experimenter *s assistant showed the subject the second ar- 4 ray of photographs of the four types of denture setups. In this array, the order of the photographs was changed. The photographs were now arranged as follows: Textbook, Aggressive, Passive, Characterized. CHAPTER IV RESULTS I The mean age of the forty subjects who participated in the study was 50.2 years, with a range from twenty to seventy-four years. Nineteen of the subjects were females and twenty-one were males. Chi-square tests of preferences for types of dentures with regard to the age (X2 = 25.64) and sex (/3 = 3.51) of the subjects were non-significant. Hypothesis I holds that subjects have a preference for the type of dentures they desire. A one-way, repeated measures, analysis of variance was calculated to determine if there was a preference in the subjects1 initial ratings of the four types of dentures. The results are presented in Table 3. The F of 11.29 was significant at greater than the .01 level (p > .01). These results confirm Hypothesis I. In order to determine the specific sources of sig nificant, mean differences between the four types of dentures, Duncan*s Multiple Range Test (Bruning, 1968, pp. 115-117) was utilized. The data is presented in Table 4. i i The comparisons among the mean ratings for the four types 65 66 TABLE 3 SUMMARY OF ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE OF SUBJECTS1 INITIAL RATINGS OF THE FOUR TYPES OF DENTURES Source df MS F Subjects 39 5.05 Types 3 34.34 11.29a ST 117 3.04 ap > .05 67 TABLE 4 DUNCAN'S MULTIPLE RANGE TEST AS APPLIED TO THE ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE OF THE SUBJECTS1 INITIAL RATINGS OF THE DENTURES Type I vs. Type IV (R^ = 1.68) 7.05 - 4.95 = 2.10a Type vs. Type III (R^ = 1.55) 7.05 - 6.63 = 0.42 Type I vs. Type II (R^ = 1.63) 7.05 - 5.83 = 1.22 Type II vs. Type IV (R = 1.55) 5.83 - 4.95 = 0.88 Type II vs. Type III (R£ = 1-55) 6.63 - 5.83 = 0.80 Type III vs. Type IV (R3 = 1.63) 6.63 - 4.95 = 1.68a ap = .05 of dentures indicate that at the .05 level (p = .05) there were significant differences in subjects’ mean ratings between types I and IV, and III and IV. A second one-way, repeated measures analysis of variance was performed to determine if there was a mean preference among the dentists* initial ratings of the four types of dentures they would select for their patients. The results are summarized in Table 5. The resulting F of 0.36 was not significant. These results indicate that dentists do not have a mean preference to fit a particular types of denture to patients. The Pearson Product-Moment Correlation (Bruning, 1968, pp. 152-155) was also used to determine the relation ship between a dentist’s initial rating of his preference to fit a type of denture to a given subject and the corre sponding subject’s rating of the same type of denture. As summarized in Table 6, the data shows there is no signifi cant relationship between the dentist’s and subjects’ ratings. The above results indicate that subjects do have a preference for a given type of denture to be utilized for themselves, but dentists have no preference. There is no significant relationship between the dentures the subjects choose for themselves and those that the dentists choose for the subject. 69 TABLE 5 SUMMARY OF ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE OF DENTISTST INITIAL RATINGS OF THE FOUR TYPES OF DENTURES Source df MS F Dentists 39 2.80 Types 3 1.58 0.36 DT 117 4.33 70 TABLE 6 CORRELATIONS BETWEEN SUBJECTS’ AND DENTISTS’ INITIAL RATING OF TYPES OF DENTURES Correlation r r to -Za Subject-Dentist Dentures Rating of Type I .00 .02 Subject-Dentist Dentures Rating of Type II .07 .42 Subject-Dentist Dentures Rating of Type III .02 .14 Subject-Dentist Dentures Rating of Type IV .29 1.81 aZ 05 ±1-96 I 71 Hypothesis II states that all subjects will initially accept the dentures given to them regardless of whether it was their first, second, third or last choice. Dentists reported that 100 percent of subjects wore their dentures on the first opportunity. These results substantiate Hypothesis II. Table 7 presents the summary of the one-way, repeated measures analysis of variance for the post-pre subjects ’ ratings of the type of dentures he received, according to whether he obtained his first, second, third or last choice as determined on his initial ratings of all dentures. The F of 4.34 is significant at greater than the .01 level Cp > .01). The data in Table 8 summarize the results of Duncan’s Multiple Range Test (Bruning, 1968, pp. 115-117) as used to determine the specific sources of 1 significant mean differences between the choices. The ! comparisons among the mean ratings for the four choices indicate that at the .05 level of significance Cp = .05), there were significant changes in the subjects’ ratings of the dentures as a function of which initial choice the subject later received. The significant differences were between choices one and four, and two and four. Inspection of the mean difference ratings (Table 9) shows a progres sive increasing difference as a function of which choice the subject received. Subjects who received their first and second choice of dentures show a slight decline in 72 TABLE 7 SUMMARY OF ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE OF SUBJECTS’ POST-PRE DIFFERENCE RATINGS OF THE DENTURES RECEIVED ACCORDING TO THE SUBJECTS’ INITIAL CHOICE Source df MS F Subjects 1 11.03 Choice 3 16.09 4.54a SL 3.6 3.55 ap > .01 73 TABLE 8 DUNCAN1S MULTIPLE RANGE TEST AS APPLIED TO THE ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE OF THE SUBJECTS' DIFFERENCE RATINGS OF THE DENTURES RECEIVED ACCORDING TO THE SUBJECTS' INITIAL CHOICE Choice I vs. Choice IV (R = 1.85) 2 .10 - (-.60) = 00 ■ -0 o Choice I vs. Choice III (R3 = 1.79) 1.00 - (-.60) = 1.60 Choice I vs. Choice II (R2 = 1.70) -.40 - (-.60) = .20 Choi ce II vs. Choice IV (R = 1.79) 3 2.10 - (-.40) = 2. 50a Choice II vs. Choice III (R = 1.70) 1.00 - (-.40) = 1.40 Choice III vs. Choice IV (R = 1.70) 2.10 - (1.00) = 1.00 ap = .05 74 TABLE 9 MEAN SUBJECT DIFFERENCE RATING OF DENTURES AS A FUNCTION OF WHICH INITIAL CHOICE THE SUBJECT RECEIVED Subjects’ Initial Choice 1 2 3 4 Mean Post-Pre Ratings -0.60 -0.40 1.00 2.10 I I i 75 their mean difference ratings of satisfaction with the dentures. Subjects who received their third and fourth choice of dentures show a positive increase in their mean post-pre difference ratings of satisfaction with the dentures. These results support Hypothesis III, which held that subjects who did not receive their first choice of dentures will show a positive increase in their preference ratings for the dentures they receive, with the amount of positive increase inversely related to the choice they receive. This indicates that dissonance operates as a factor in subjects* rated satisfaction with the dentures they receive. Table 10 summarizes the computations of the one way, repeated measures, analysis of variance of the dentists’ post-pre difference ratings for each type of denture subjects* received. The F of 0.59 is non significant. The results indicate that the dentists show no mean difference in their estimations of their patients’ satisfaction with the dentures. Table 11 shows the Pearson Product-Moment Correla tions between subjects* and dentists* post-ratings of the different types of dentures. None of the correlations are i significant. These results confirm that the dentists did not see any change in the subjects* satisfaction with the dentures they received. 76 TABLE 10 SUMMARY OF ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE OF DENTISTS1 POST-PRE DIFFERENCE RATINGS FOR EACH TYPE OF DENTURE SUBJECTS RECEIVED Source df MS F Dentists 39 5.10 Types 3 3.64 0.59 DT 117 6.14 77 TABLE 11 CORRELATIONS BETWEEN SUBJECTS’ AND DENTISTS’ FINAL RATINGS OF TYPES OF DENTURES Correlations r r to Za Subject-Dentist Dentures Ratings of Type I -.04 -.24 Subject-Dentist Dentures Ratings of Type II -.29 -1.84 Subject-Dentist Dentures Ratings of Type III .21 1.31 Subject-Dentist Dentures Ratings of Type IV .08 .48 78 A further source of confirmation for the statement that dentists saw no change in the subjects’ satisfaction with the dentures is found in the analysis of the dentists’ ratings of difficulty in fitting the subject with dentures. The dentists’ pre-ratings of expected difficulty in fitting subjects with dentures was analyzed, via an analysis of I variance, with regard to whether the subject was to receive his first, second, third or last choice of dentures. At the time of the rating, the dentist had no knowledge of which dentures they would fit to the subject. The results, J | as summarized in Table 12, show a non-significant F. This | indicates that the dentists did not foresee any mean dif- i I ! ficulty in fitting patients with dentures. The mean ratings range from 5.00 to 5.60, which corresponds to a qualitative definition that the dentists expected the subjects on the average to be ’’neither easy nor difficult" to fit with dentures. Table 13 presents the summary of the one-way analysis of variance of the dentists’ post-pre difference ratings of the degree of difficulty in fitting subjects with dentures according to whether the subject had received his first, second, third or last choice of dentures. The non-significant F indicates that there was no significant change in the dentists’ initial expectation that the sub jects would be "neither easy nor difficult" to fit with dentures, regardless of which choice of dentures the 79 TABLE 12 SUMMARY OF ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE OF DENTISTS’ PRE-RATING OF EXPECTED DIFFICULTY IN FITTING SUBJECTS WITH DENTURE AS A FUNCTION OF WHICH CHOICE OF DENTURES THE SUBJECT WOULD RECEIVE Source df MS F Dentists 1 1.17 Choice 3 0.73 0.26 DC 36 2.81 I I 80 TABLE 13 SUMMARY OF ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE OF DENTISTS1 POST-PRE DIFFERENCE RATINGS OF THE DEGREE OF DIFFICULTY IN FITTING SUBJECTS WITH DENTURES ACCORDING TO WHICH CHOICE THE SUBJECT RECEIVED Source df MS F Subjects Choice SC 1 4.22 3 1.42 .41 36 3.46 81 subject actually received. A number of other dependent measures were evaluated to determine if any differences existed in the behavior of patients with regard to which choice of dentures they rece ived. The various time periods during the fitting of the dentures were segmented and analyzed. Hypothesis IV held that subjects who received dentures which were not their first choice would show a greater frequency of self initiated appointments with the dentist than would subjects i who received their first choice of dentures. There was no significant difference (Table 14) in the number of subject- initiated visits after the first fitting of the dentures, regardless of which choice the subject received. Thus, Hypothesis IV is not substantiated. Similarly, one-way analyses of variance show that the choice the subject received has no relationship with the mean number of visits of subjects after the first fitting of the trial j wax dentures (Table 15), dentist-initiated contacts with | ! subjects (Table 16), days from first fitting of trial wax dentures to final appointment (Table 17), days from first fitting of trial wax dentures to the first insertion of the regular dentures (Table 18), days from first insertion of the regular dentures to the final appointment (Table 19), and days from initial contact to the first fitting of the trial wax dentures (Table 20). 82 TABLE 14 SUMMARY OF ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE OF NUMBER OR SUBJECT-INITIATED CONTACTS FOR SUBJECTS’ FOUR CHOICES Source df MS F Choice 3 1.16 0.87 J |SC 36 1.33 83 TABLE 15 SUMMARY OF ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE OF NUMBER OF VISITS OF SUBJECT AFTER TRIAL WAX FITTING FOR FOUR CHOICES Source df MS F Choice 3 3.83 0.98 SC 36 3.91 I 84 TABLE 16 SUMMARY OF ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE OF NUMBER OF DENTIST-INITIATED CONTACTS WITH SUBJECTS FOR SUBJECTS’ FOUR CHOICES Source df MS F Choice 3 2.47 0.94 SC 36 2.63 85 TABLE 17 SUMMARY WAX OF ANALYSIS TO TOTAL DAYS F R O M TRIAL FITTING TO FINAL APPOINTMENT FOR SUBJECTS* FOUR CHOICES Source df MS F Choice 3 354.30 0.54 SC 36 656.51 : TABLE 18 SUMMARY OF ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE OF DAYS FROM TRIAL WAX TO FIRST INSERTION OF REGULAR DENTURES FOR SUBJECTS’ FOUR CHOICES Source df MS F Choice 3 244.70 2.36 87 TABLE 19 SUMMARY OF ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE OF DAYS FROM FIRST FINAL INSERTION OF REGULAR DENTURES TO APPOINTMENT FOR SUBJECTS’ FOUR CHOICES Source df MS F Choice 3 384.09 0.73 SC 36 523.10 88 TABLE 20 SUMMARY OF ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE OF NUMBER OF DAYS j FROM INITIAL CONTACT WITH SUBJECT TO FIRST I FITTING OF TRIAL WAX DENTURES ACCORDING TO WHICH CHOICE THE SUBJECT RECEIVED Source df MS F Choice 3 2321.00 2.04 SC 36 1140.46 | i 89 The only significant time analysis (F = 3.08, Table 21) was the total mean number of days from initial contact to final contact as a function of which choice of dentures the subject received. Duncan’s Multiple Range Test (Bruning, 1968, pp. 115-117), as summarized in Table 22, j showed that there were differences significant at the .05 J ! level Cp = .05) between subjects receiving their second andi third choices and also between subjects receiving their third and fourth choices. The results indicate that pa tients who received their third choice of dentures spent | significantly less time in acquiring their dentures than j patients who received their second or fourth choices. j Table 23 summarized the analysis of variance of thej length of time the subject wears the dentures each day as a’ i function of which choice he obtained. The F of 0.0 was notj significant. j Hypothesis V stated that subjects who did not | receive their first choice of dentures will show a greater j frequency of requests for alterations of the aesthetic j j appearance of the dentures than subjects who received their | first choice. The data recorded by the dentists on the j reasons for the subjects’ visits were not sufficiently I detailed to tell if subjects initiated requests for altera-j tions of the aesthetic appearance of the dentures. Hypoth esis V thus can not be analyzed. 90 TABLE 21 SUMMARY OF ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE OF DAYS FROM INITIAL CONTACT TO FINAL CONTACT ACCORDING TO WHICH CHOICE THE SUBJECT RECEIVED Source df MS p Choice 3 5349.66 3 - 08a SC 36 1735.79 ap > .05 91 TABLE 22 j I I I SUMMARY OF DUNCAN’S MULTIPLE RANGE TEST AS APPLIED TO ' THE ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE OF TIME FROM INITIAL CONTACT TO FINAL CONTACT ACCORDING TO WHICH CHOICE THE SUBJECT RECEIVED i ! Choice 1 vs. Choice 2 (R3 = 39.59) 122.40 - 105.80 = 16.60 Choice 1 vs. Choice 3 (R =37.64 ! 2 j 72.70 - 105.80 = 33.10 |Choice 1 vs. Choice 4 (R^ = 37.64) I 121.10 - 105.80 = 15.30 Choice 2 vs. Choice 3 (R = 40.85) 4 72.70 - 122.40 = 49.70a Choice 2 vs. Choice 4 (R = 37.64) 2 121.00 - 122.40 = 0.70 Choice 3 vs. Choice 4 (R^ = 39.59) 121.10 - 72.70 = 48.40a ap = .05 92 TABLE 23 ! Source df MS F Choice 3 0 0.00 SC 36 1.12 SUMMARY OF ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE OF THE LENGTH OF TIME THE SUBJECT WEARS THE DENTURES EACH DAY AS A FUNCTION OF WHICH CHOICE THE SUBJECT RECEIVED 93 The last series of analyses are concerned with the relationship of the F scale scores to the choice of den- ; j tures the subject receives. i | Table 24 shows the distribution of subject F scale j i j scores as related to the choice of dentures the subject j received. The X3 (chi-square) analysis of the distribution| was non-significant (X3 = 44.80), showing that there was no| biased distribution of subjects* F scale scores with the j !choice of dentures they received. Inspection of Table 24 i i 'points out the positively skewed distribution of subjects* ! I F scale scores. ! | ! | In a similar analysis (Table 25), there is no i , i ! ] significant relationship in the distribution of dentists* j : F scale scores with the choice of dentures that their j j j subjects received ( X 2 = 33.30). Inspection of Table 25 ! j ! jpoints out the negatively skewed distribution of dentists* • F scale scores. | | ! Hypothesis VI stated that low F scale scoring j subjects will show a greater positive change in their ratings of the dentures they receive than will high F scalej ! _ ! I scoring subjects, with choice and rating change being i . inversely related to F scale score within both groups. i Table 26 is the summary of the two-way, repeated measures analysis of variance of the subjects* F scale scores by the choice of dentures the subject received. The dependent measure was the post-pre difference rating of the type of TABLE 24 DISTRIBUTION OF SUBJECTS’ F SCALE SCORES ACCORDING TO THE CHOICE THE SUBJECT RECEIVED Choice F Scale Score 30 60 70 80 90 100 110 120 130 140 150 160 170 180 1 0 1 0 0 1 2 1 2 1 1 1 0 0 0 10 2 0 0 1 0 1 0 4 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 10 3 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 2 1 3 0 0 0 10 4 0 0 0 1 0 3 0 1 0 2 0 1 1 1 10 1 1 1 2 2 6 5 6 5 4 4 1 1 1 40 Xs = 44.80 95 I TABLE 25 DISTRIBUTION OF DENTISTS’ F SCALE SCORES ACCORDING TO THE CHOICE THE SUBJECT RECEIVED Choice F Scale Score 30 50 60 70 80 90 100 110 120 1 0 0 0 2 6 2 0 0 0 10 2 0 2 2 1 2 1 2 0 0 10 3 0 2 0 2 1 1 3 0 1 10 4 1 0 0 5 2 0 1 1 0 10 1 4 2 10 11 4 6 1 1 40 X2 = 33.30 I i TABLE 26 SUMMARY OF ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE OF SUBJECTS* F SCALE SCORES ACCORDING TO THE CHOICE OF DENTURES THE SUBJECT RECEIVED Source df MS F Choice 3 16.09 4.65a F Scale 1 2.03 .58 FC 3 4.96 1.43 SFC 32 3.46 ap > .05 97 denture the subject received. The only significant F (F = 4.65) was obtained for the effect of choice. Thus, Hypothesis VI is not supported. A two-way analysis of variance of the subjects’ and | dentists’ F scale scores, using the post-pre difference ; ratings of the subjects on the type of dentures they | received as the dependent measure (Table 27) shows a sig- j i nificant main effect for the dentists’ F scale scores j I(f = 4.45). Further analysis of this effect is summarized I j 'in Table 28. This represents a two-way, repeated measures j j i I analysis of variance of the Dentists’ F scale score and the! | : i choice the subject received, using the post-pre difference j |ratings of the subjects on the type of dentures they | jreceived as the dependent measure. As prior analysis i | |indicated, choice is a significant variable (F = 4.86), but \ ! jnow there is no interaction effect. The interaction I between choice and dentists’ F scale score was expected on I the basis of the immediately prior analysis (Table 27). It is possible that if the study had sampled a wider range of I dentists’ F scale scores, there might have been an inter- j I ' !action effect. i 98 TABLE 27 | j SUMMARY OF ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE OF SUBJECTS* F SCALE j SCORE AND THE DENTISTS* F SCALE SCORE USING THE | t j POST-PRE DIFFERENCE RATINGS OF THE SUBJECT ON j ! ■ ; THE TYPE OF DENTURES THEY RECEIVED AS THE j DEPENDENT MEASURE Source df MS F Patients 1 3.03 0.74 i Denti sts 1 18.22 4.45a PD 1 7.22 1.76 ! 1 SPD 36 4.10 i i ap > .05 [ | i 99 I I I I I I , J | | TABLE 28 j i ! SUMMARY OF ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE OF DENTISTS’ F SCALE j i ] SCORE BY THE CHOICE OF DENTURES THE SUBJECT RECEIVED j USING THE POST-PRE DIFFERENCE RATINGS OF THE ! SUBJECTS AS THE DEPENDENT MEASURE Source df MS F Choice 3 16.09 4.86a Dentist F Scale 1 4.22 1.28 CD 3 5.82 1.76 SCD 32 3.31 jap > -05 CHAPTER V i I i DISCUSSION ! i I This experiment was concerned with conformity j ! behavior and its sequali, as affected by the personality j j ! variable of conformist tendencies. Conformity behavior wasj ! defined as the subjects1 acquisition of full dentures that | | | he did not aesthetically desire. This behavior was pre- j j ^ j jdieted upon the basis of a tripartite, abridged analysis of; the literature on conformity. j The post facto theory of Cognitive Dissonance was j utilized to posit the subsequent effects of acquiring a set i of full dentures that were technologically and functionally! suited to the patient, but aesthetically were not the j patientrs most desired choice. According to this theory, individuals in a nforced choice1* situation who have acquired something which was not their first choice will j reorganize their evaluations of it so that it is seen as 1 t ; |being more favorable than their initial selection. This | i | outcome is subject to the amount of pressure applied to obtain conformity. The greater the amount of pressure j | applied, above the minimum needed to obtain conformity, the! 100 101 less likely is a cognitive re-evaluation of the acquired object. Although cognitive re-evaluation is presumed to be dependent upon the subject*s degree of conformist tendencies (authoritarianism), the results concerning this interrela- j j tionship, for the sake of clarity, will be discussed j separately. j j Aesthetic Preference It was expected that subjects would have a prefer ence for the type of full denture they desired. Lefer, j | | (Pleasure and Rosenthal (1962) have shown that full dentures! j i |can be classified into four groups which are easily differ-I i I ; ientiated by patients. Pilot work on the present study j j ; i demonstrated that the photographs of the four different types of dentures utilized were distinguishable from each j other with 100 percent accuracy. ^ ! The former authors also demonstrated that their | i i i subjects had a preference for a given aesthetic appearance j i of the full dentures they desired in their own mouths. As j Linn (1966) noted, there is a high degree of public concern! with the importance of a good dental appearance. It would j seem that patients express this concern in relation to ; themselves and to what they think would look good on themselves. j Thirty-eight of the forty subjects who participated! ( j in the present study had a clear, marked preference to be j 102 fitted with a particular type of full denture. One subject, who received her third choice of dentures, was so displeasedj with the aesthetic appearance of her dentures that she sawed I the upper one-third of her lower dentures off. j I | Analysis of the subjects* initial ratings of the j I four types of dentures indicated a highly significant j i preference. Analysis of the dentists* initial ratings of ; j i the types of dentures that they felt were best suited to a j I particular patient revealed no significant preference. | j Dentist by patient analysis of the dentists* ratings of thej four types of dentures showed no significant relationship j between the dentists’ and subjects’ ratings. | l [ i # f j The results for subjects are thus m accord with j former findings. The lack of relationship between the i dentists* and subjects’ ratings indicate that under condi- j tions where the dentist selects the aesthetic appearance ofj the patient’s full dentures, they will not be in accord ! with the patient’s choice. ! An explanation for the lack of dentists’ preference, and relationship between dentist-patient ratings may hinge | on the design of the experiment. The type of denture that the subject received was determined by the experimenter. j It is possible that dentists who entered the study at a I later chronological point may have been aware that they had no real choice in the selection of the type of dentures the patient received. There was, however, no discernable 103 difference in dentists’ ratings as a function of the time the dentist entered into the study. The dentists, participating in the present study, were all students at the University of Southern California School of Dentistry. These dentists, as opposed to those trained in a school utilizing the Dentogenic approach of Frush and Fisher (1959), have been exposed to an orienta tion which places great importance upon the patient’s I iaesthetic preferences. The results seem to substantiate . the effectiveness of their training. But, to accurately !differentiate between the effects of training and charac- i i jteristics of dentists, it would be necessary to analyze the j preference ratings of dentists trained in the Dentogenic ! orientation versus patient-oriented dentists. Conformity When an individual engages in behavior which is in opposition to what he would ’’freely” do, he is conforming. Since subjects have a preference to be fitted with a particular type of full denture, the question that arises i is, ”Do they conform?” All subjects wore the dentures outside of the i | i Dental School on the first and subsequent occasions in ; which they were allowed to do so. Regardless of how the patient initially rated the dentures, he accepted them. There is no one answer as to why this occurred. Factors 104 within the experimental situation, the social conditions of the study, and the characteristics of the subjects provide some indications of the reasons. Pragmatically, the key factor is probably the l j disability of the patient (Hallenbeck and Lundstedt, 1966; j MacGregor, 1953; Wilkins and DeCharms, 1962). He would j | | prolong the period of his psychological and physical disa- j bility by failing to accept the dentures. In addition, an j ] ■ j | aesthetic choice is not demonstrably correct. The subject | | | i was fitted by an ’’expert" who might be expected to know the j | j correct choice. In the fact of these factors, it is pos- I j j j sible that the subjects* certainty of the ’’correct” choice ! I i i | | might diminish. All these factors have been shown (Asch, ! ! 1956; Berenda, 1950; Caylor, 1957; Fisher, Williams and ; i Lubin, 1957; Kelley and Lamb, 1957; Weiner, Carpenter and Carpenter, 1956) to increase the probability that a con- j formity response will occur. | I There are also factors which prevailed within the ; study which would lead to a prediction of nonconformity. The high subjective personal value of the choice (Blake, j Mouton and Helson, 1956; Testinger and Thibaut, 1951; j | jVaughan and Mangan, 1963), the initial preference of the j i ! subject for a particular type of denture (Deutsch and Gerard, 1955; Fisher, Rubenstein and Freeman, 1956), and j I the perception of the full range of choices available (Sherif and Sherif, 1956; Wilkins and DeCharms, 1962) would lead to a prediction of nonconformity. i Basically then, this is a question that had to be empirically answered. The results show that three- j I quarters of the subjects (thirty subjects) accepted a type j ! I of full denture setup that they initially rated as their j second, third or last choice. ! ! Cognitive Dissonance j i The theory of Cognitive Dissonance supplies the i ! | methodology for predicting what will occur subsequent to | conformity behavior. Since the physical reality of posses-: sion of the full dentures could not be change, subjects j required some modality for dissonance reduction. Given | that conformity had occurred, it is difficult to change ‘ that behavior. It is much easier and more frequent (Cohen,' j Brehm and Fleming, 1958; Mills, 1958; Weick, 1967) to resolve the dissonance by changing cognitive elements so that they are more in accord with the present situation. I The situation for the full denture patient who is experiencing dissonance is that he has paid for and j received a set of full dentures that were not his own first' choice. The easiest method of resolving his dissonance is | to find qualities about the dentures he now has which wouldi make them more attractive to him. The change in ratings ! (post-pre) of the dentures the subject receives shows that this is precisely what occurred. The greatest change in _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ i 106 ratings were found among those subjects who received their last choice of dentures. The changes were found to be inversely proportional to which choice the subject received. This exactly fits the predictions made from dissonance j theory. | I Since it is possible for subjects to reduce their j dissonance in different modalities (Brehm and Cohen, 1964),! ! or in several modalities at the same time (Steiner and j Rogers, 1963; Weick, 1967), other dependent measures were j i I j I examined. ! ! I i ! The most global changes might be those perceived by! i the dentists in their work with the patients. Initial j j ratings of the dentists* expectations of difficulty in i fitting their patients with full dentures showed no signif-. i icant differences. The mean qualitative rating indicated j that dentists expected their patients to be neither diffi- j |cult nor easy to fit with dentures, regardless of which | I [ choice the subject would receive. Dentists* change ratings! i of degree of difficulty in fitting subjects with dentures shows that there was no significant change in the dentists’ initial expectations, regardless of which choice of full dentures the patient had received. In addition, dentists* | post-pre difference ratings of the type of dentures the patient received did not indicate any significant change. j I Dentists* post-ratings of their patients* preference for the type of dentures they received showed no change from 107 their pre-ratings and had no relationship to the patients1 ratings. There was also no difference found in the number of dentist-initiated visits with regard to which choice of dentures the patient received. i | In summary, the most global measures (i.e., the | dentists1 perceptions of the patients) showed no indication that the dentists were aware of any overt manifestation of non-cognitive efforts at dissonance reduction by their ipatients, regardless of which choice of dentures the pa- i tient received. Similarly, the dentists did not initiate i any significantly different number of contacts with Ipatients as related to which choice the patient received. ! i I More specific dependent measures relating to the j | ; subjects* overt behavior were analyzed. No significant I differences, as related to the choice the subject received,! j were found in the number of subject-initiated visits after J ! the first fitting of the regular dentures, the mean number ! I ; of visits of subjects after the first fitting of the trial ! wax dentures, the mean number of days from the first fit ting of the trial wax dentures to the final appointment, ! i t the mean number of days from the first fitting of the trial wax dentures to the first insertion of the regular den- j tures, the mean number of days from the first insertion of the regular dentures to the final appointment, and the mean number of days from initial contact to the first fitting of the trial wax dentures. There also was no significant 108 difference in the length of time the subject wore the dentures each day as a function of which choice he received. Thus, the above overt dependent measures of subjects’ attempts to reduce dissonance do not indicate that subjects utilized any alternative or additional modalities that were measured in this study. As Steiner I and Rogers (1963) and Weick (1967) point out, if one j i modality effectively reduces dissonance, there is no j i I reason to assume that alternative or additional modalities | will be utilized. The subjects within this study reduced i I their dissonance via cognitive re-evaluations of the den- j I ! i tures they received. I i The California F Scale I I It was proposed that some individuals are more susceptible than others to pressures toward conformity. Dissonance theory (Brehm and Cohen, 1964; Festinger, 1957) j and research (Adams and Rosenbaum, 1962; Aronson and j j Carlsmith, 1962; Cohen, Brehm and Fleming, 1958; Cohen, j i Terry and Jones, 1959; Festinger and Carlsmith, 1959; j ! I Rabie, Brehm and Cohen, 1959) have shown that there is a ' definite relation between pressure and dissonance. As the j j i pressure to choose a less desirable alternative (conform) j increases above the minimum needed to obtain that behavior,! j the amount of dissonance decreases. What was proposed was that susceptibility to conformity pressures be determined ....... '109 in terms of California F Scale scores. The higher the score, the less pressure that is necessary to obtain con formity. This effect should manifest itself in a three-way interaction among the dentists1 and subjects* F scale i scores and the choice of dentures the subject received. j i The distribution of both dentist and patient F scale scores by the choice of dentures the patient received; was not significant. The distribution of dentists* F scale scores was negatively skewed, while that of the patients j i f | was positive skewed. ! I ; ! The former findings contradict Evans* (1967) con- ; I ! i : I ! | elusion from a review of the literature that dentists are I 1 i | decidedly authoritarian. This difference may reflect a j I ; change in the personality types of students who apply for ; and are admitted to the USC Dental School, the aforemen- ! tioned effects of the orientation of the Dental School, a ! j deviation from the groups Evans* study encompasses, or a I I change in the personality types of students applying for | dentistry. j The various analyses of the effects of the F Scale ! i scores reveal no effect for the subjects’ F Scale score. There is a significant effect for the dentists* F Scale score when the post-pre difference ratings of subjects are | used as the dependent measure. The cell means for this j patient F Scale by dentist F Scale score analysis of variance showed a net decrease in the change ratings of 1X0 patients with high-scoring dentists and a net increase in ratings of patients with low F Scale-scoring dentists. A more informative analysis of variance was of the dentists* F Scale scores by the choice the patient received, again j ! jusing the patients’ change in ratings of the dentures they t received as the dependent measure. This analysis did not | show a significant effect for the dentists’ F Scale scores,; but inspection of the cell means yielded an interesting | trend in the data. I I Both the means for the high and low-scoring den- ! ] j j tists yielded a positive increase in the difference ratings,! iwhich was again inversely related to the choice the subject! ! i received. But, the increase for high-scoring dentists ; tended to be less than that for the low-scoring dentists. j The results indicate that subjects’ F Scale score ! I ! j is not a variable that can be used to determine the exces- ! I sive amount of pressure used in a ’’forced choice*' j i (conformity) situation. The dentists’ F Scale score may j i prove to be a significant measure. j i As Kerlinger (1966, pp. 200-206) points out, the j use of a limited range of measures of an independent vari- i | able serves to decrease the between group variability. j I This would mean that the effect due to this variable would i i be much more difficult to detect. In order to definitively establish the effect of the dentists’ F Scale score, one would have to obtain a wider range of scores. Ill Verification of the speculation of the effect of the authoritarianism of the dentist upon the patient’s resolution of dissonance may have important meaning both within the field of Dental Prosthetics and future disson ance research. For the dentist, it would mean that low authoritar-j ian dentists would not have to be as concerned with which j | choice they gave the patient as he would tend to resolve \ i his dissonance through cognitive re-evaluation. It might well be that since these dendists are low in authoritari- i anism, they would allow their subjects to select their own j I I type of denture in the very beginning of the fitting ! ! ! process. I i I High authoritarian dentists, on the other hand, ' i might well find that pushing their choice of dentures upon j i their patients would have adverse consequences. These ! patients might resolve their dissonance via a negative j j cognitive re-evaluation of their dentures and/or other i j modalities that are more overt. j In terms of future dissonance research, the trends j ! i !noted for the effects of the dentists’ authoritarianism I i !point toward a consideration of the personality character- ; istics of the experimenter as a significant variable | affecting the outcomes of dissonance investigations. CHAPTER VI SUMMARY This study investigated the relationship between the personality variable of authoritarianism (tendency toward conformity) and its applicability to a Cognitive j Dissonance analysis of the effects of conformity behavior |in the full denture patient. ! Conformity behavior is a well-researched area, but | no analysis of the effects of conformity has been published, I ; This behavior is most closely related to the "forced- choice1* experimental situation within dissonance research. ! Dissonance theory is concerned with post facto events and, thus, is well equipped to analyze the sequali of conformity behavior. The theory postulates multiple modes of disso- i nance reduction with the most frequent being a more posi tive cognitive evaluation of the less desirable alternative jthe subject has acquired. The arousal of dissonance is itself dependent on the amount of pressure used to obtain compliance. The California F Scale was used as a reliable, i well-validated measure of the tendency to conform. It was assumed that subjects who scored high on this test would 113 require relatively less pressure to conform than would low- scoring subjects. The amount of pressure to conform would be a function of the difference between the subject's first choice of full dentures and the choice he received as well j | as the tendency of the dentist to exert pressure toward j j conformity. The dentists' pressures toward obtaining | J conformity were also measured by the California P Scale. i i In the present investigation, subjects rated four ] j | types of full dentures according to how well they would j I like each type fitted to their mouth. They then took the j S i i ? |California F Scale and were subsequently randomly assigned j their first, second, third or last choice of full dentures | ;as determined relative to their initial ratings of all four! types of dentures. The subjects' dentists also rated the | i : dentures on the basis of their preferences for their j patients. The dentists then took the California F Scale i and were informed as to the type of denture they were to i fit to their patient. Four weeks after the subject had his ; final appointment with the dentist, both dentist and , i patient were asked to re-rate the four types of dentures. i j Other dependent measures were collected during the time the ! subjects were being fitted with the dentures and at the j time of the post-ratings. i Results indicated that subjects had a preference j i for a particular type of denture, while dentists did not. All subjects conformed, as manifested by wearing the 114 dentures on the first occasion they were allowed to do so. The postulated changes in ratings of the dentures they received established that dissonance operated subsequent to conformity. The changes in ratings were such as to estab- 1 I lish an inverse relationship between the choice of denturesj j the subject received and a positive increase in his post- i ! ratings of that type of denture. The results did not j | support the proposed relationship between the subjects’ j tendency to conform, as measured by the California F Scale,! and cognitive dissonance effects. There was noted a j possible relationship between the dentists’ tendency to | apply pressures toward obtaining conformity and cognitive dissonance effects. i i ! L I S T O F R E F E R E N C E S I i I i i 115 Adams, Adorono t Allen, I Allpor t Aronson ! Aronson i Aronson Asch, S i Bar on, LIST OF REFERENCES '. S., and Rosenbaum, W. B. The relationship of worker productivity to cognitive dissonance. Journal of Applied Psychology, 1962, 46, 161-164. T. W. ; Frenkel-Brunswick, Else; Levinson, D. J.; and Sanford, R. N. The Authoritarian Personality. New York: Harper & Row, Publishers, 1950. r. L. 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Singer, J. L. Daydreaming: An Introduction to the Experimental Study of Inner Space~ New York: Random House, Inc. , 1966 . Small, D. 0., and Campbell, D. T. The effect of acquiescence response-set upon the relation of the F scale and conformity. Sociometry, 1960, 23, 69-70. iSmith, E. E. The power of dissonance techniques to change j attitudes. Public Opinion Quarterly, 1961, 25, 626-639. Smith, S.; Murphy, D. B.; and Wheeler, L. S. Relation of intelligence and authoritarianism to behavior contagion and conformity. Psychological Reports, 1964, 14, 248. i Steiner, I. D., and Rogers, E. D. Alternate responses to i dissonance. Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 1963, 6 ~ 5 ~ j 128-136. Vaughan, G. M. , and Mangan, G. L. Conformity to group pressure in relation to the value of the task mate-j rial. Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, j 1963, 66, 179-183. Vidulick, R. N., and Kaiman, I. P. The affect of informa- 1 tion source status and dogmatism upon conformity | behavior. 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Involvement and communication discrepancy | as determinants of opinion change. Journal of i Abnormal and Social Psychology, I960” 60, 86-94. I | i | Zuckerman, M., and Eisen, B. Relationship of acquiescent ' j response set to authoritarianism and dependency. I Psychological Reports, 1962, l£, 95-102. A P P E N D I X 127 128 Name of Dentist________________________________ Name of Patient___________________________________ Patient’s I. D. Number___________________________ Patient’s Address Phone Number When you make the first appointment with your patient, please set the time of the appointment for one-half hour |before you wish to see the patient. iPlease escort your patient to Room 4301 one-half hour ibefore your scheduled appointment. i |Please return to Room 4301 approximately one-half hour ilater to escort patient to clinic. Please notify me of day, date, and time of appointment. Ext. 2829 F I i 129 You are going to receive a full set of false teeth in the near future. We would like to know which type of teeth you feel would look best in your mouth. Each photograph shows one style of teeth you might select. We would like to know how much you like each of the different types of teeth so that we may have some idea of which ones you would like in i your mouth. Please place a check mark next to the number which tells how well you like the teeth in that row. Name Date I. D. # Row I 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Best Very Good Good O.K. I don*t know Not too good Bad Very Bad Worst Row II 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Best Very Good Good O.K. I don*t know Not too Good Bad Very Bad Worst Row III 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Best Very Good Good O.K. I don’t Know Not too Good Bad Very Bad Worst■ i Row IV i j i 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 i 1 ' Best Very Good Good O.K. I don’t Know Not too Good Bad Very Bad Worst i 130 Name ________________ Age_____ Sex_____ I.D. # _________________ Date_______________ DENTAL SCHOOL SURVEY The following statements refer to opinions regard ing a number of social groups and issues, about which some people agree and others disagree. Please mark a number next to each statement in the left-hand margin according toj your agreement or disagreement, as follows: , 1: Slight opposition, disagreement j 2: Moderate opposition, disagreement ; 3: Strong opposition, disagreement ; 4: Slight support, agreement j 5: Moderate support, agreement j 6: Strong support, agreement i 1. Obedience and respect for authority are the most j important virtues children should learn. j 2. A person who has bad manners, habits and breeding ; can hardly expect to get along with decent people.i 3. If people would talk less and work more, everybody would be better off. 4. The business man and the manufacturer are much more important to society than the artist and the professor. 5. Science has its place, but there are many impor- ; tant things that can never possibly be understood j by the human mind. i 6. Every person should have complete faith in some supernatural power whose decisions he obeys with out question. 7. Young people sometimes get rebellious ideas, but as they grow up they ought to get over them and settle d own. I ; _____________________ F_JEI I ! 8. What this country needs most, more than laws and i political programs, is a few courageous, tireless, devoted leaders in whom the people can put their faith. 9. No sane, normal, decent person would ever think of hurting a close friend or relative. ! i 10. Nobody ever learned anything really important, j except through suffering. ' i 11. What the youth needs most is strict discipline, j rugged determination, and the will to work and ; fight for family and country. j 12. An insult to our honor should always be punished, j 13. Sex crimes, such as rape and attacks on children, j deserve more than mere imprisonment; such crimi- j nals ought to be publicly whipped, or worse. j 14. There is hardly anything lower than a person who | does not feel a great love, gratitude, and respect! for his parents. ■ i 15. Most of our social problems would be solved if we ! could somehow get rid of the immoral, crooked and j feebleminded people. 16. Homosexuals are hardly better than criminals and j ought to be severely punished. 17. When a person has a problem or worry, it is best for him not to think about it, but to keep busy with more cheerful things. 18. Nowadays, more and more people are prying into matters that should remain personal and private. 19. Some people are born with an urge to jump from high places. 20. People can be divided into two distinct classes: the weak and the strong. 21. Someday, it will probably be shown that astrology can explain a lot of things. | Fill 132 22. Wars and social troubles may someday be ended by an earthquake or flood that will destroy the whole world. 23- No weakness or difficulty can hold us back if we have enough willpower. 24. It is best to use some prewar authorities in Germany to keep order and prevent chaos. 25. Most people don*t realize how much our lives are controlled by plots hatched in secret places. 26. Human nature being what it is, there will always j be war and conflict. j 27. Familiarity breeds contempt. 28. Nowadays, when so many different kinds of people move around and mix together so much, a person has to protect himself especially carefully against catching infection or disease from them. i 29. The wild sex life of the old Greeks and Romans was! tame compared to some of the goings on in this j country, even in places where people might least : expect it. I 30. The true American way of life is disappearing so fast that force may be necessary to preserve it. | ! F III ; Name Age Sex What is How are What is What is your occupation (job title)?_______________ you paid (Piece work -- hourly -- weekly - monthly)?__________________________ the highest grade you completed in school? the highest degree you have received?_____ 134 DENTIST-SUBJECT ASSIGNMENT Key: HC - S scores above 128 on the C a l i f o r n i a F Scale (Form II) LC - S score 128 or below on the California F Scale (Form II) S - S is to receive his first choice of type of denture set-up (as determined from Form I), or, in the event of equal preferences, he is to receive one of his first choices (as determined from Table II). D - S is to receive second, third, or fourth choice of type of denture set-up (as determined from Form I). In the event of equal preferences, he is to receive one of his second or third choices (as determined from Table II). Dental Student______ & I.D. # given S____/Score____ to S Denture I Prefer- F Scale Type of j ence to Designa- Dentures! S*s Name be tion Given ! 135 You are going to fit your patient with a set of full dentures. We would like to know which type of teeth you feel would look best in your patient’s mouth. Each photo graph shows one style of teeth you might select. We would like to know how well you feel each of the different types of dentures would look in your patient’s mouth. Please place a check mark next to the number which tells how well you feel this type of denture would look in your patient’s mouth. Dentist Date Subject__________________________ Subject’s I.D.# Row I 19 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Best Very Good Good O.K. I donft Know Not too Good Bad Very Bad Worst Row II 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Best Very Good Goo'd O.K. I don’t Know Not too Good Bad Very Bad Worst Row III 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Best Very Good Good O.K. I don't Know Not too Good Bad Very Bad Worst: t Row IV 1 I 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Best Very Good O.K. I don’t Not too Bad Very Worst Good Know Good Bad Name of Dentist______ Date______ Name of Subject_______________________ Subject’s I.D.# Please place a check mark next to the number which signifies how difficult you feel this patient will fit with dentures that will satisfy him. 9. (Easiest possible) 8. (Extremely easy) 7- (Very easy) 6. (Easy) 5. (Neither easy nor difficult) 4. (Difficult) 3. (Very difficult) 2. (Extremely difficult) 1. (Almost impossible) 137 Name of Dentist Name of Subject______________________________I.D.#_ You are to fit this subject with dentures of the type ____ | set-up. Type I -- Teeth generally more ovid, delicate laterals and cuspids, more curve to smile line, large embrasures, light color. Type II -- Larger laterals and cuspids, cuspids’ position is straight and dominant, teeth are generally square and angular, darker color. Type III -- Very even and symetrical, light color. Type IV — Generally even and symetrical, but with some j rotations and irregularities, darker color. j Within the general type of dentures you are to fit to this j patient, you may make changes in gum coloration as needed. ! The specific teeth you choose are at your discretion, SO I LONG AS THE OVERALL APPEARANCE FITS THE TYPE SPECIFIED FOR j THIS PATIENT. Each type corresponds to the row designationj of the dentures’ photographs in Room 4301. F VIII! 138 Dentist Patient Patient’s I.D.# Date of first contact with patient Date of first fitting with trial wax dentures PLEASE FILL OUT THE FOLLOWING RECORD AFTER EACH CONTACT WITH THE PATIENT SUBSEQUENT TO THE FIRST FITTING WITH THE TRIAL WAX DENTURES. 1. Date______________ Who initiated contact: Dentist Patient’ Reason for contact: Comments about subject’s behavior and complaints during this contact: 2. Date______________ Who initiated contact: Dentist Patient" Reason for contact: Comments about subject’s behavior and complaints during this contact: Name of Dentist_____________________________ Name of Subject_____________ Subject’s I.D.# Please place a check mark next to the number which signifies how difficult you feel it was to fit this patient with dentures. 9. (Easiest possible) 8. (Extremely easy) 7.____ (Very easy) j 6.____ (Easy) j 5 .____ (Neither easy nor difficult) 4.____ (Difficult) j I 3.____ (Very difficult) 2.____ (Extremely difficult) 1.____ (Almost impossible) Your patient has now received his dentures. We would like to know how well you think he likes these dentures. We are also interested in how well you think he likes the other types of denture set-ups. We would like you to indicate what you think your patient’s rating of each of the differ ent types of dentures would be. Please place a check mark j next to the number which tells how well you think your j patient would like the various types of denture set-ups. j Dentist Date Patient Patient’s I.D.# Row I 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Best Very Good Good O.K. I don’t Know Not too Good Bad Very Bad Worst Row II 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Best Very Good Good O.K. I don’t Know Not too Good Bad Very Bad Worst Row III 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Best Very Good Good O.K. I don’t Know Not too Good Bad Very Bad Worst Row IV 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Best Very Good Good O.K. I don’t Know Not too Good Bad Very Bad Worst 141 N a m e _______________ I.D. #_________________ You have now received your dentures. We would like to know how well you like these teeth. We are also interested in how well you like the other teeth shown in the pictures. We would like you to indicate how much you like each of the different kinds of teeth. Please place a check mark next to the number which tells how well you like the teeth shown in that row. Row I 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Best Very Good Good O.K. I don't Know Not too Good Bad Very Bad Worst Row II 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Best Very Good Good O.K. I don't Know Not too Good Bad Very Bad Worst Row III i i 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Best Very Good Good1 O.K. I don't Kn ow Not too Good Bad Very Bad Worst i 1 1 1 Row IV i 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Best Very Good Good O.K. I don't Know Not too Good Bad Very Bad Worst! ! 1 H_XIIJ 142 Name___________________________ I.D. #___________________ Date Now that you have your dentures we would like to know how long you wear them each day- Please place a check mark next to the number which indicates how many hours you wear your dentures. All day, except for brushing For meals and when with other people For meals only For brief periods when social occasions require it. Do not wear these dentures If you do not wear your dentures at least 8-12 hours of the day, please explain why. 24 hours 8-12 hours 00 i * 3 - hours 3- 4 hours 1 O hours 0 hours F XIII 143 UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA SCHOOL OF DENTISTRY 925 WEST THIRTY-FOURTH STREET LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA 90007 DEPARTMENT OF REMOVABLE PROSTHODONTICS , 1970 Dear In the near future, Mr. R. Morrison, a research assistant from the University of Southern California, School of Dentistry, will call you. | The purpose of this contact is to obtain informa- ition about the service the school has provided you. We are jinterested in improving the services the school offers and ^ thus we wish to contact some of the people who have used this facility. We would deeply appreciate a few minutes of your time to obtain some information which will aid us in this purpose. Thank you. ' Yours truly, /sig/ Bernard Levin j Bernard Levin, D.D.S. j Chairman i 'BL/et !

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Creator Hirsch, Barry Todd (author)

Core Title A Cognitive Dissonance Analysis Of Conformity Behavior, As Applied To The full Denture Patient

Degree Doctor of Philosophy

Degree Program Psychology

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag OAI-PMH Harvest,psychology, clinical

Format dissertations (aat)

Language English

Contributor Digitized by ProQuest (provenance)

Advisor Tiber, Norman (committee chair), Levin, Bernard (committee member), Levitan, Seymour (committee member), Wolpin, Milton (committee member)

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-c18-519671

Unique identifier UC11362270

Identifier 7127925.pdf (filename),usctheses-c18-519671 (legacy record id)

Legacy Identifier 7127925.pdf

Dmrecord 519671

Document Type Dissertation

Format dissertations (aat)

Rights Hirsch, Barry Todd

Type texts

Source University of Southern California (contributing entity), University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses (collection)

Access Conditions The author retains rights to his/her dissertation, thesis or other graduate work according to U.S. copyright law. Electronic access is being provided by the USC Libraries in agreement with the au...

Repository Name University of Southern California Digital Library

Repository Location USC Digital Library, University of Southern California, University Park Campus, Los Angeles, California 90089, USA