Editing Cognitive dissonance (section)

=== Psychotherapy ===
The general effectiveness of [[psychotherapy]] and [[psychological intervention]] is partly explained by the theory of cognitive dissonance.<ref name="Cooper2007">Cooper, J. (2007). Cognitive Dissonance: 50 Years of a Classic Theory. London: Sage Publications.{{page needed|date=November 2021}}</ref> In that vein, [[social psychology]] proposed that the mental health of the patient is positively influenced by his and her action in freely choosing a specific [[therapy]] and in exerting the required, therapeutic effort to overcome cognitive dissonance.<ref name="CooperAxsom1982">Cooper, J., & Axsom, D. (1982). Integration of Clinical and Social Psychology. Oxford University Press.{{page needed|date=November 2021}}</ref> That effective phenomenon was indicated in the results of the study ''Effects of Choice on Behavioral Treatment of Overweight Children'' (1983), wherein the children's belief that they freely chose the type of therapy received, resulted in each overweight child losing a greater amount of excessive body weight.<ref name="MendoncaBrehm1983">{{cite journal | vauthors = Mendonca PJ, Brehm SS | year = 1983 | title = Effects of Choice on Behavioral Treatment of Overweight Children | journal = Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology | volume = 1 | issue = 4| pages = 343–358 | doi=10.1521/jscp.1983.1.4.343}}</ref>

In the study ''Reducing Fears and Increasing Attentiveness: The Role of Dissonance Reduction '' (1980), people with [[ophidiophobia]] (fear of snakes) who invested much effort in activities of little therapeutic value for them (experimentally represented as legitimate and relevant) showed improved alleviation of the symptoms of their [[phobia]].<ref name="Cooper1980">{{cite journal | vauthors = Cooper J | year = 1980 | title = Reducing Fears and Increasing Attentiveness: The Role of Dissonance Reduction | doi = 10.1016/0022-1031(80)90064-5 | journal = Journal of Experimental Social Psychology | volume = 47 | issue = 3| pages = 452–460 }}</ref> Likewise, the results of ''Cognitive Dissonance and Psychotherapy: The Role of Effort Justification in Inducing Weight Loss'' (1985) indicated that the patient felt better in justifying their efforts and therapeutic choices towards effectively losing weight. That the therapy of effort expenditure can predict long-term change in the patient's perceptions.<ref name="AxsomCooper1985">{{cite journal | vauthors = Axsom D, Cooper J | year = 1985 | title = Cognitive Dissonance and Psychotherapy: The Role of Effort Justification in Inducing Weight Loss | doi = 10.1016/0022-1031(85)90012-5 | journal = Journal of Experimental Social Psychology | volume = 21 | issue = 2| pages = 149–160 }}</ref>