He Guihong, Xia Xing: Application of Cognitive Dissonance Theory in Scientific Atheism Education
Since the founding of New China, Marxist scientific atheism education directed toward the broad masses of people has never ceased for a moment. From schools to society and across organizations at all levels, Marxist scientific atheism education has been carried out alongside ideological and political education; it has always been an inherent requirement of socialist spiritual civilization construction. However, the paradox lies in the fact that while Marxist scientific atheism education has remained unrelenting, theism and its activities have continued to expand. Typically, this paradox is understood as a negative effect of the efficacy of Marxist scientific atheism education. How can we overcome this negative effect? How can we improve the scientific rigor, rationality, and effectiveness of Marxist scientific atheism education? The author intends to reflect on this major practical issue solely from the perspective of the individual subject's cognitive psychology, in order to seek guidance from learned colleagues.
From the perspective of cognitive psychology, the internal cognitive structure of the individual plays a crucial role in the process of receiving external information, manifested in two ways. First, the individual's cognitive structure possesses a certain screening function for input information. In other words, not all information occurring around an individual can exert an effective influence on them. Second, external information that does act upon and effectively influences the individual must undergo "internalization," "accommodation," and "equilibration" through the individual's cognitive structure to form a new cognitive structure. The Swiss psychologist Jean Piaget [1] noted: "The process of the formation and change of schemas is the process of psychological development; the constantly developing state of equilibrium resulting from assimilation and accommodation is, in fact, psychological development." [2] Thus, psychological development is a process of continuous change in cognitive structures. The development of cognitive structures is a continuous process of construction occurring within every individual through the alternating effects of assimilation and accommodation. This process is enriched, enhanced, and developed within a cycle of "disequilibrium—equilibrium—new disequilibrium." This equilibrium is not a static balance of forces but a dynamic equilibrium possessing a self-regulating function. "We believe that psychological equilibrium, and even biological equilibrium, implies a form of agency in the subject. This agency exists in an adjustment aimed at compensation." [3] In the process of the dynamic equilibrium of cognitive structures, people learn new knowledge, form new understandings, and produce new behaviors.
In his research on the process of human attitude change, the famous American psychologist Leon Festinger proposed the renowned "cognitive dissonance theory." This theory holds that humans tend to maintain cognitive harmony or a state of psychological equilibrium; once dissonance or imbalance occurs, the individual will actively adjust. Many factors influence the dynamic equilibrium of cognitive structures. Among these, contradictions and oppositions easily arise between old and new cognitions, between cognition and behavior, and between cognition and attitude. Opposing cognitions, behaviors, and attitudes cause an individual to experience psychological contradiction; this is "cognitive dissonance." However, the psychology of a normal person cannot remain in a state of disharmony forever. When disharmony occurs between various components of an individual's cognition, negative psychological feelings such as anxiety and tension arise, which over time can lead to psychological illness. Therefore, once cognitive dissonance occurs, the pressure triggered by these negative feelings is transformed into a drive for the individual to strive to reduce or eliminate the dissonance. The individual's cognitive structure will actively adjust—either by accepting, rejecting, or diminishing the state of contradiction—to achieve psychological equilibrium and acquire new cognitions. Consequently, the state of cognitive dissonance becomes an important internal drive promoting purposeful volitional behavior in humans.
This theory provides beneficial enlightenment for reflecting on the current dilemmas facing our country's scientific atheism education: Why does "positive education" yield such meager results? Why is it that after a dozen or even dozens of years of "positive education," an individual may inadvertently be subverted by theism? Why is the effectiveness of scientific atheism education so low during the process of "rescue education"? [4] In addition to the need for continuous improvement in mechanisms, systems, and educational models, utilizing cognitive dissonance techniques in scientific atheism at the technical level and strengthening targeted and effective education is the necessary path to improving and enhancing Marxist scientific atheism education.
Marxist scientific atheism education faces living individuals, each with their own life backgrounds and intellectual backgrounds. These backgrounds inevitably leave a profound mark on the individual's cognitive structure, thereby determining whether cognitive information regarding atheism can be accepted and whether it produces dissonance within the individual's existing cognitive structure. Unfortunately, whether in terms of content, form, or method, there is almost no differentiation in Marxist scientific atheism education. Differentiation is not the end, but the means to reach the end. We treat Marxist scientific atheism education as a panacea suitable for all ages, but the result has been a dose of "brown sugar water"—perfectly colored but lacking the function to prevent or cure disease. To overcome such defects, we must strengthen target-specificity, create cognitive contradictions, and open the gates of the individual’s cognitive structure.
First, at the level of positive education, we must consider the age characteristics and psychological traits of the individual, fully accounting for the level at which the cognitive structure can accept and understand, thereby stimulating cognitive dissonance between "godless" and "god-fearing." Only by stimulating the logical contradictions in their cognition and providing guidance according to the situation can we continuously update their relevant cognitive structures and form atheistic cognitions at a higher level. Second, at the level of rescue education, Marxist scientific atheism education faces complex individuals. It is all the more necessary to fully consider the individual’s intellectual background, life background, and personal experience, striving to break the cognitive systems the individual has already formed or is forming. If our education cannot targetedly stimulate the individual’s cognitive contradictions, no matter how long the education lasts or what methods are adopted, the expected educational results will not be produced. Third, whether in positive or rescue education, educators must learn to "create contradictions" and "utilize contradictions" to form cognitive dissonance in the educated, scientifically advancing the practical effects of Marxist scientific atheism education. There are two levels of issues here. First, if the educator is facing individuals who have always been influenced by Marxist scientific atheism education and whose basic cognitive framework is positively oriented toward atheism, the educator should, during the teaching process, use the already formed atheistic thoughts to trigger curiosity and interest in higher-level atheistic thoughts. By transmitting new, higher-level educational content, the educator can consolidate and develop the individual's understanding and practical capacity for atheistic thought.
Second, if the educator faces individuals who are skeptical of atheism or even heavily influenced by theistic thought, they must find ways to induce psychological contradictions in the recipient, opening a gap in the cognitive structure for accepting atheistic ideas and forming a new cognitive structure guided by atheism. The specific practice lies in creating dissonance between the subject's old and new cognitions—using atheistic concepts to lead the subject to question theistic thoughts; creating dissonance between the subject's old theistic cognitions and new atheistic behaviors—such as intentionally arranging for the subject to practice certain atheistic activities to create a conflict between their cognition and behavior; and creating dissonance between the subject's old cognitions and new attitudes—such as creating certain atheistic scenarios for the subject to experience firsthand, causing a change in their attitude toward atheism, thereby stimulating cognitive dissonance and opening a cognitive gap for Marxist scientific atheism education.
The content of Marxist scientific atheism education faces the challenge of reform to advance with the times. Marxist atheistic thought is the guiding principle and policy that we must uphold with a clear-cut stand. However, in terms of specific educational content, we must distinguish between traditional cultural customs and superstitious ideas; maintain scientific confidence in unknown areas awaiting exploration based on known scientific achievements; and distinguish the grey middle ground between Marxist scientific atheism education and real life, which is easily blurred. We must treat the concepts of "godless" and "god-fearing" in advance. When individuals face complex life and cognitive scenarios, they should have "as distinct as the Jing and Wei rivers" [5] cognitive boundaries. Once this boundary is crossed, the individual's cognitive structure will produce logical contradictions and "uncomfortable" cognitive psychology, thereby sustaining the results brought by positive education. At the same time, we must enhance the individual's cognitive atheism, strengthening its positive guiding role for the meaning of life and its negative role against theism. It must be emphasized that this "individual cognition" must be something each individual truly perceives, rather than a so-called verbal "understanding" produced by preaching that lacks a "skin-piercing pain" [6] (poignant personal impact). Only an individual atheistic cognition produced on the basis of profound realization can allow the individual's old cognitive structure to self-reject and self-defend against the various erosions and poisons of theism when facing diverse concrete theistic scenarios. This requires us to consciously increase the "opposition" to theism during the process of Marxist scientific atheism education, and this opposition must be profoundly realized by the recipient.
Any educational process is a dynamic process of moving cognitive structures from dissonance to harmony, and from harmony to new dissonance. Marxist scientific atheism education is an educational activity directed toward the individual soul and mind, and it is far more complex than pure scientific knowledge education or humanities education. The complexity lies in the fact that atheistic ideas and theistic concepts collide almost every day in people’s daily lives, and currently, theistic thought has a quite broad space and soil for existence among certain populations. Therefore, it is particularly important to stimulate individual participation, train the cognitive coordination ability of the educated, and consciously coordinate and discard the interference of theist thoughts. In view of this, the strategy for Marxist scientific atheism education must fully consider the factors influencing active individual participation and train and strengthen the capacity of atheistic cognitive structures.
First, we must allow the educated more selectivity. "Selectivity" does not mean choosing between atheism and theism, but rather increasing the sense of choice for the educated during the Marxist scientific atheism education process—it is "I chose this thought," rather than "this thought chose me and made me accept it." An important defense mechanism of self-selection lies in self-esteem. Once an individual self-selects a certain thought or behavior, they will self-resist subsequent opposing thoughts or behaviors. This resistance has nothing to do with the individual's level of ideological cultivation, but is related to their self-esteem. Self-esteem will resist external thoughts or behaviors and make negative evaluations of one's own choices; people will do everything possible to emphasize the correctness of their original self-selection and reduce the negative impact of subsequent information on that self-selection. The purpose of Marxist scientific atheism education is clear: to establish the correct worldview, outlook on life, and values in the educated. However, selectivity in the educational process, through the effect of the subject's self-esteem, strengthens the effect of Marxist scientific atheism education, enhances immediate educational results, and provides a strong active defense for extending educational effects and preventing the erosion of theistic thought.
Second, allow the educated to make their own decisions. In the field of ideological and political education, "indoctrination" is necessary, but if one relies solely on indoctrination, the educational effect will inevitably be negatively affected. Most importantly, the negative factors brought by indoctrination are seen everywhere. Specifically, when atheistic ideas are eroded by theistic thoughts or behaviors, indoctrinated Marxist scientific atheism education struggles to form an effective psychological defense when facing vivid theistic scenarios. Therefore, in the process of Marxist scientific atheism education, it is both necessary and essential to allow the educated to make their own decisions. Self-decision by the educated means that during the process of atheism education, their atheistic cognitive structure is self-formed; it is an atheistic ideological system, attitude, and behavior consciously formed on the basis of the superposition of various viewpoints, concepts, and thoughts. As the individual accepts more and more atheistic viewpoints and establishes more concepts, the individual's self-defense mechanism makes it difficult for external theistic thoughts to trigger internal dissonance between old and new cognitions. Even if a major event or important source of influence forms a temporary impact on the individual's atheistic thoughts, the individual will exclude it through the process of self-adjustment of the cognitive structure, or even directly "ignore" it. This is of great benefit to strengthening and improving the individual's capacity for atheistic self-education.
Furthermore, focus must be placed on the sense of satisfaction felt by the subjects of education. An individual's specific cognitions, behaviors, or attitudes are positively correlated with the outcomes that follow the adoption of corresponding cognitions, behaviors, and attitudes. In other words, if a cognition leads to a positive individual experience, that cognition will be reinforced; if a cognition leads to a negative individual experience, that cognition will be weakened or even overturned. Therefore, the positive experience of the subjects during the process of Marxist scientific atheism education is of paramount importance. The challenge lies in the fact that Marxist scientific atheism education cannot produce the same immediate effects as the teaching of scientific knowledge, nor can it generate a sense of achievement or pleasure from solving a specific problem in the same way scientific education does; this is a shortcoming of Marxist scientific atheism education. However, it should be recognized that atheistic thought is broad and profound, possessing both historical origins and materials drawn from daily life. Atheism's exploration of the "man-god relationship" has a long history, running almost parallel to the development of human thought and civilization. The resolution of the "man-god relationship" provided by Marxist scientific atheism not only offers spiritual enjoyment—just as other major human ideologies do—but the contention between atheism and theism also concerns the daily life of every individual. For every subject of education, it ought to possess a strong inherent appeal. Educators should consciously attend to the historical depth of atheistic thought and its practical guidance for individual life, striving to ensure that subjects derive a sense of satisfaction during the educational process.
Finally, a sense of responsibility must be formed and strengthened in the subjects of education. Atheism and theism represent opposing "man-god relationships," both of which exert practical guidance and influence on an individual's life. The objective of Marxist scientific atheism education is to achieve a leap in individual consciousness through the transmission of atheistic thought, thereby transforming the objective world. In the process of Marxist scientific atheism education, forming and strengthening a sense of responsibility in the subjects not only helps consolidate the educational outcomes but also serves to constrain and guide the conscious formation of individual atheistic behaviors and attitudes. In the implementation of Marxist scientific atheism education, subjects must be made to feel a sense of responsibility for their own thoughts and actions. This requires integrating Marxist scientific atheism education with the individual's life goals and realities. For the individual, accepting correct ideological guidance leads to correct life behaviors and expected life outcomes; accepting erroneous ideological guidance leads to erroneous life behaviors and outcomes. It must be noted that there is no completely mechanical correspondence between thought and result. More importantly, it must be pointed out that in both past and present processes of Marxist scientific atheism education, divorced-from-reality methods and "reading from the textbook" [7] strategies have failed to link the education with the individual's practical situation. This creates the illusion of a "dual-track system" [8] between the individual's atheistic thoughts and their actual life—that is, the belief that since atheism does not affect my life, it does not matter whether I accept atheistic thought or not. Clearly, if atheism is not seen as responsible for an individual's life, the individual will not feel responsible for such a thought.
"Under the advance of science, one army after another holds down its arms, one fortress after another surrenders, until finally the entire infinite domain of nature is conquered by science and no longer leaves a single foothold for the Creator." [9] We believe that Marxist scientific atheism represents the general scientific direction of human understanding of the world. As long as we hold high the banner of Marxist scientific atheistic thought and adhere to scientific educational methods, Marxist scientific atheism education will surely play an increasingly significant role in promoting the historical process of human civilization.