Cognitive Dissonance

This is NYT on cognitive dissonance.

I think this is the most important concept in psychology, at least for someone with no formal training in the field. I still remember how liberating and enlightening I felt when I first came cross this a couple years back. Probably we are more like a rationalizing being than a rational one, and a healthy dose of self-delusion is by all means beneficial, and, in my opinion, necessary for us to cope with the ups and downs in the life.

"It is the big events in life that shape it"

This is Art DeVany talking about the damaging effects of binge eating.

A binge is a major determinant of your metabolic fitness. The body "remembers" these big events as they are imprinted on your hypothalmus and insulin receptors.

I think this is also true for many other aspects of life. Isn't this the same essence of the old saying that "It's hard to be water again if you were once the vast ocean" ? One of the most important findings in psychology is that our attitudes are very much dependent on how we frame the situations we are facing, and certainly some frames come from the social norms, while a substantial part of them comes from our personal experiences, especially the "big events" in the life.

I am reading another popular book on neuroscience, I might be able to add more details in this regard later.