What does Self-Persuasion result in?

Self-persuasion refers to the process through which individuals convince themselves to adopt a new belief or attitude without external coercion. This is often seen as a more profound and resilient alteration in beliefs or attitudes than changes that occur due to external pressure or influence.

The reason why self-persuasion leads to a long-lasting form of attitude change is that it typically involves a personal reflection on reasons and motivations. This self-generated reasoning fosters a stronger internal commitment to the new belief as individuals articulate the reasons for the change themselves. Since the change is voluntary and personally relevant, it creates a sense of ownership over the new attitude, making it less likely to be swayed back or reversed.

In contrast, options that suggest a short-term change, temporary behavior change, or increased dissonance fail to capture the enduring nature of self-persuasion. Those concepts often involve external factors or lack the depth of personal commitment associated with self-persuasion, which is essential for achieving lasting attitude shifts. Thus, self-persuasion is particularly effective at fostering deep, stable changes in how individuals think and behave over time.