consensus

n. general agreement among the members of a group, especially when making an appraisal or decision. In tests of person perception, a consensus that a target person has a certain trait can act as a standard against which to compare the self-related biases of those who disagree with the group view. See also false-consensus effect.

Browse dictionary by letter

a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z

Psychology term of the day

May 10th 2024

self-consistency perspective

a variation of cognitive dissonance theory in which cognitive dissonance is considered particularly likely to occur when an inconsistency involves some aspect of the self. This perspective differs from self-affirmation theory in that dissonance can be reduced only by resolving the specific inconsistency that gave rise to the discomfort; it does not allow for the possibility that dissonance can be reduced by affirming some other aspect of the self. [originally proposed by U.S. psychologist Elliot Aronson (1932– )]