We don't like to think that we are immoral, so we make up reasons for our behaviour that make us look good. We even believe them ourselves. A recent study found that given the choice between two magazines, one with women in swimsuits and one without, the men chose the swimsuit magazine. That wasn't the reason they gave, though. Each man was shown two magazines: one with wider sports coverage and another with more articles, and one or other of these had the bikini pictures. The men chose the magazines with swimsuit pictures but justified their choice by saying that they liked the magazine because it had more articles, or wider sports coverage. When they were told the real reason for their choice they did not believe it.
It's interesting to bear in mind when constructing villains. No one ever thinks that they are the villain.
Thanks to Mind Hacks for an excellent summary of the article.
