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Elliot Aronson

Psychologist who pioneered the Jigsaw Classroom and refined cognitive dissonance theory.

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During the Great Depression, Elliot Aronson's family was the only Jewish one in their Revere, Massachusetts neighborhood, and he experienced severe poverty while growing up.[1]

Key facts and history

He earned a master's degree from Wesleyan University in 1956 and a Ph.D. in psychology from Stanford University in 1959, where Leon Festinger was his doctoral advisor.[2] Aronson advanced Festinger's theory of cognitive dissonance, showing that psychological discomfort results when attitudes and behaviors are inconsistent.[3][4] After achieving high SAT scores that secured a work-study scholarship, Aronson completed his bachelor's degree at Brandeis University in 1954.[1][2] The Association for Psychological Science gave Aronson the William James Award, and he was also chosen for membership in the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.[5]

In 1981, the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education named Aronson one of five academics nationwide as "Professor of the Year".[6] Through a well-known study, Aronson showed that individuals who go through an awkward or humiliating initiation to enter a group subsequently rate that group more positively.[4] Violence between ethnic groups erupted in Austin, Texas schools after desegregation in 1971, leading a former student who was a school administrator to bring in Aronson as a consultant.[7] Aronson created the jigsaw classroom method, in which students collaborate in small teams that are diverse in both race and ability.[7][8]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Elliot Aronson" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Chibnall, John T., "Elliot Aronson and the life of becoming.", American Psychological Association, date; Aronson, E. (2010). Not by chance alone: My life as a social psychologist. New York: Basic Books. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Elliot Aronson" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Aronson, E. (2010). Not by chance alone: My life as a social psychologist. New York: Basic Books.; Sheehy, "Biographical dictionary of psychology", Taylor & Francis, 1997, p. 23–24 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  3. Wikipedia, "Elliot Aronson" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Festinger, L. (1957). A theory of cognitive dissonance. Evanston, IL: Row, Peterson. Aronson advanced Festinger's theory by showing that it is most powerful whe (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  4. Wikipedia, "Elliot Aronson" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Aronson, E., & Mills, J. (1959). The effect of severity of initiation on liking for a group. Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 59, 177–181.; "Festinger's Cognitive Dissonance Theory and Research Examples", 2012-04-22 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  5. Wikipedia, "Elliot Aronson" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Aronson, "Improving academic achievement: impact of psychological factors on education", Emerald Group Publishing, 15 April 2002, p. 15; Haggbloom, "The 100 most eminent psychologists of the 20th century", Review of General Psychology, 2002, p. 139–152; McNulty, "UCSC Professor Emeritus Elliot Aronson receives lifetime achievement award from the Association for Psychological Science", UC Santa Cruz (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  6. Wikipedia, "Elliot Aronson" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Gonzales, "The scientist and the humanist: A Festschrift in honor of Elliot Aronson", Psychology Press, 2010, p. 345–346; "KU's Bricker recognised for outstanding teaching", Lawrence Journal-World, 28 May 1981, p. 6 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  7. Wikipedia, "Elliot Aronson" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Gilbert, "No One Left to Hate: Averting Columbines", New York Times, March 27, 2001; Sheehy, "Biographical dictionary of psychology", Taylor & Francis, 1997, p. 23–24; Gilbert, "No One Left to Hate: Averting Columbines", New York Times, March 27, 2001; Sheehy, "Biographical dictionary of psychology", Taylor & Francis, 1997, p. 23–24; Sheehy, "Biographical dictionary of psychology", Taylor & Francis, 1997, p. 23–24; Levinson, "Education and sociology: an encyclopedia", Taylor & Francis, 2002, p. 117; Levinson, "Education and sociology: an en.wikipedia.org
  8. Wikipedia, "Elliot Aronson" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Levinson, "Education and sociology: an encyclopedia", Taylor & Francis, 2002, p. 117; Brophy, "Motivating Students to Learn", Routledge, 2004, p. 203–204; "OVERVIEW." The Jigsaw Classroom. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 June 2016.; Levinson, "Education and sociology: an encyclopedia", Taylor & Francis, 2002, p. 117 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Elliot Aronson (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

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Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.

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