Final answer:
Changing attitudes or behaviors is the best way to alleviate the uncomfortable feeling of cognitive dissonance, which is a psychological discomfort due to conflicting beliefs and actions.
Step-by-step explanation:
The best way to fix the uncomfortable feeling brought by cognitive dissonance is to change attitudes or behaviors to align with one another. Cognitive dissonance is the psychological discomfort that arises when there is a conflict between a person's beliefs, behaviors, or attitudes, especially if this conflict challenges their positive self-perception. To cope with this discomfort, people often make adjustments such as changing their discrepant behavior (for example, quitting smoking if they believe smoking is bad) or changing their beliefs (such as rationalizing their smoking by thinking it has some health benefits like weight control).
Engaging in groupthink is not a constructive strategy for resolving cognitive dissonance, as it may lead to poor decision-making in an effort to maintain harmony within a group. Continuation of inconsistent behavior or lying about behaviors may temporarily reduce discomfort but ultimately exacerbate the dissonance in the long term. To reduce cognitive dissonance and regain a sense of psychological consistency, individuals would benefit most from examining their beliefs and behaviors and making appropriate changes to resolve the conflict.