In Festinger and Carlsmith's (1959) classic study on cognitive dissonance, participants who were paid $20 for doing a boring task, in contrast to those who were paid $1 for doing the same task, ________.

A) liked the task more
B) liked the task less
C) liked the task equally as much
D) were more likely to tell their friends to do the task

Festinger and Carlsmith found that participants who were paid $1 for performing a boring task experienced cognitive dissonance, as they were aware that the task was not enjoyable but had only received a small reward. To reduce this dissonance, they convinced themselves that the task was actually more enjoyable than they had initially thought. In contrast, participants who were paid $20 did not experience the same level of dissonance, as the amount they were paid gave a valid reason for doing the boring task. As a result, they did not need to convince themselves that the task was enjoyable and therefore, liked the task less.