Supine body posture decreases rationalizations: Testing the action-based model of dissonance

• A supine body posture has been found to reduce approach motivation.
• Cognitive dissonance reduction involves approach motivation.
• We test whether a supine posture will also decrease cognitive dissonance reduction.
• The supine posture decreased cognitive dissonance reduction.

The action-based model of dissonance theorizes that when individuals have conflicting cognitions with action implications, they experience dissonance. This dissonance motivates the individual to value one action tendency over the other, thereby facilitating effective action. Thus, a decrease in the motivation to act (decreased approach motivation) should decrease this tendency to value one action tendency over the other (dissonance reduction). The present research tested this prediction by using an embodied manipulation, a supine posture, to decrease approach motivation. In Experiment 1, relative to an upright posture, a supine posture decreased dissonance reduction in an effort justification paradigm. In Experiment 2, a supine posture decreased the spreading of alternatives following a difficult decision. These results suggest that embodied manipulations that reduce approach motivation decrease dissonance reduction. The findings support the action-based model of dissonance, and suggest that embodied manipulations of reduced approach motivation reduce the rationalization of behavior.