<Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This article is written like a personal reflection or opinion essay that states a Wikipedia editor's personal feelings about a topic . Please help improve it by rewriting it in an encyclopedic style . (November 2008) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) </Td> </Tr> <P> Self - justification describes how, when a person encounters cognitive dissonance, or a situation in which a person's behavior is inconsistent with their beliefs, that person tends to justify the behavior and deny any negative feedback associated with the behavior . </P> <P> The need to justify our actions and decisions, especially the ones inconsistent with our beliefs, comes from the unpleasant feeling called cognitive dissonance . Cognitive dissonance is a state of tension that occurs whenever a person holds two inconsistent cognitions . For example, "smoking will shorten the life which I wish to live for as long as possible" and yet "I smoke three packs a day". </P> <P> Dissonance is bothersome in any circumstance but it is especially painful when an important element of self - concept is threatened . For instance, if the smoker considered himself a healthy person, this would cause a greater deal of dissonance than if he considered himself an unhealthy person because the dissonant action is in direct conflict with an image of himself . In this case, people who tried to stop smoking but failed start to think that smoking is not harmful as much as they thought . </P>

Never justify your behavior with the wrongs of others