Justification as Antecedent and Consequence of Self-control Failure

Abstract

This chapter introduces the topic of justification and discusses how justification processes may precede incidents of self-control failure–when our actions are inconsistent with our long-term goals and values–or follow behaviors that signal self-control failure. It presents research showing that justification processes can be a cause of self-control failure when people engage in self-licensing and evidence demonstrating that justification processes may also be a consequence of self-control failure. The chapter argues that people have a tendency to justify their behavior by confabulating reasons for their behavior when it is perceived as self-control failure and the actual cause of the behavior is inaccessible. It discusses the background of the term confabulation and studies demonstrating how confabulation may be of relevance in the domain of social and health psychology. Confabulation is defined as the process of adopting an erroneous reason for one’s behavior “without the intent to deceive and without knowing that this claim is ill-grounded”.