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Also by Elliot Aronson:

Mistakes Were Made (But Not by Me), May 2007
Hardcover

MISTAKES WERE MADE (BUT NOT BY ME)
By: Elliot Aronson

Why We Justify Foolish Beliefs, Bad Decisions, and Hurtful Acts

Harcourt
May 2007
On Sale: May 7, 2007
292 pages
ISBN: 0151010986
EAN: 9780151010981
Hardcover
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Non-Fiction

Why do people dodge responsibility when things fall apart? Why the parade of public figures unable to own up when they screw up? Why the endless marital quarrels over who is right? Why can we see hypocrisy in others but not in ourselves? Are we all liars? Or do we really believe the stories we tell?

Renowned social psychologists Carol Tavris and Elliot Aronson take a compelling look into how the brain is wired for self-justification. When we make mistakes, we must calm the cognitive dissonance that jars our feelings of self-worth. And so we create fictions that absolve us of responsibility, restoring our belief that we are smart, moral, and right—a belief that often keeps us on a course that is dumb, immoral, and wrong.

Backed by years of research and delivered in lively, energetic prose, Mistakes Were Made (But Not by Me) offers a fascinating explanation of self-deception—how it works, the harm it can cause, and how we can overcome it.

Media Buzz

Talk of the Nation - July 20, 2007