Mental model · Where thinking goes wrong
Self-justification
Self-justification: After acting, the mind supplies reasons that make the action right — automatically, and it feels like reasoning.
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After acting, the mind supplies reasons that make the action right — automatically, and it feels like reasoning.
Try it now
Take a decision you defended that went badly. Write the justification you used at the time.
What to do with the answer
Ask whether you would accept that same reasoning from someone you disagree with. That is the test.
Where it misleads
It is not a moral failing and cannot be willed away. Written records made before the outcome are the only real defence.
The module it belongs to
- Reflective Thinking — Examine your own reasoning
The book behind it
- Mistakes were made — Its big ideas, in our own words.