We would like to believe we are guided by logic and evidence but most of the time our minds are working backward. We start with the conclusion we like and then retrofit whatever justifications will allow us to keep liking it. The idea that our stated motivations are often just a cover story for something more emotional or self-serving is not just a quirk of podcasts or bitcoin enthusiasm. It is an operating principle of the human brain.
The split-brain research you reference is a sharp reminder that confabulation is not rare. It is the default mode. Even in healthy brains the interpreter in the left hemisphere is constantly trying to construct a coherent narrative even when the real cause for our actions is elsewhere. Once you accept this it becomes harder to take your own reasoning at face value. Every stance you take should be tested against the possibility that you hold it because it makes you feel good instead of because it is correct.
We would like to believe we are guided by logic and evidence but most of the time our minds are working backward. We start with the conclusion we like and then retrofit whatever justifications will allow us to keep liking it. The idea that our stated motivations are often just a cover story for something more emotional or self-serving is not just a quirk of podcasts or bitcoin enthusiasm. It is an operating principle of the human brain.
The split-brain research you reference is a sharp reminder that confabulation is not rare. It is the default mode. Even in healthy brains the interpreter in the left hemisphere is constantly trying to construct a coherent narrative even when the real cause for our actions is elsewhere. Once you accept this it becomes harder to take your own reasoning at face value. Every stance you take should be tested against the possibility that you hold it because it makes you feel good instead of because it is correct.