Mistakes Were Made Intro & Chapter 1 Reflection "Mistakes Were Made (but Not by Me)" by Carol Tavris and Elliot Aronson explores the concept of self-justification and how individuals rationalize their actions to protect their self-esteem. Chapter one and introduction discuss cognitive dissonance—the mental discomfort experienced when holding two conflicting beliefs or when behavior conflicts with beliefs. To alleviate this discomfort, people engage in self-justification, modifying their beliefs or perceptions to align with their actions. I can see myself behaving in ways described in the book. Self-justification is a common human trait, and even with self-awareness, it can be challenging to avoid entirely. This is because you can self-justify the actions of not only yourself, but the ones …show more content…
There was a time when a close friend of mine began acting negatively towards myself and the rest of my friends, which resulted in people being offended and having their feelings hurt and not wanting to be around him for a while. I rationalized their behavior by considering the immense stress they were under and the external pressures they faced, especially in their personal life. I overlooked their mistake of lashing out and acting toxic on our friend group because I deeply cared about him. I did this by focusing instead on their positive qualities and the good intentions they strive to abide by. About 2 months ago a coworker I didn't get along with made a mistake when we were closing, this being them not knowing how to close down the store properly. I quickly attributed their error to incompetence or laziness. However, I didn’t consider the external factors that might have influenced their behavior, such as them being a newer employee or that maybe they were going through something in their personal