1 An example of plain is using basic language to describe something. 2  An example of plain is unflavored yogurt. 3  An example of plain is a woman without make-up.
Cognitive Dissonance Definition. Cognitive dissonance occurs when tension arises between a person's attitudes or beliefs and a decision that contradicts those pre-existing modes of thinking. The psychological phenomenon also occurs when a person chooses between two equally attractive or equally unappealing options. According to the Business Dictionary's website, the most common example of cognitive dissonance in the business world is the occurrence of buyer's remorse..
There have been 100s, if not 1000s, of experiments that have examined cognitive dissonance theory since the theories inception, but the seminal experiment was published in 1959 (Festinger & Carlsmith, 1959).