Why do we lie to ourselves? Zeno of Citium’s ancient warning reveals the hidden trap of self-deception and how to break free.

Self-deception can hurt the one who is in denial, and others. It can come across as being willfully obstinate, not caring about the people around them. Sometimes, it seems that the person deceiving ...

Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. I write about relationships, personality, and everyday psychology. Have you ever been in scenarios where these thoughts occurred ...

A new study suggests that self-deception is the key to understanding irrational actions of national leaders in war, as exemplified by Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine. Strategy underlies the ...

Imagine you committed to delivering a project within a scheduled timeline but failed to meet it. Instead of accepting responsibility and acknowledging the delay, you transfer the blame to one of your ...

A philosophy team analyzed the role self-deception plays in everyday life and the strategies people use to deceive themselves. The team described four strategies used to stabilize and shield the ...

Self-deception refers to the capacity of individuals to hold or act upon beliefs they privately recognise as false, often driven by motivational biases and emotional needs. Belief dynamics encompasses ...

No one wants to be seen as a liar. Liars are considered untrustworthy at best and immoral at worst. And yet, we are perfectly content to lie to ourselves all the time. “I’ll enjoy this sleeve of Oreos ...

A philosophy team from Ruhr-Universität Bochum (RUB) and the University of Antwerp analyzed the role self-deception plays in everyday life and the strategies people use to deceive themselves. In the ...

Strategy underlies the affairs of national leaders, including how they view and interact with other states — but what if such strategy is borne of self-deception? That’s the thrust of a novel ...