The effect of cognitive vagueness and motivation on conscious and unconscious self-deception

Self‐deception: Distorted metacognitive process in ambiguous contexts

“…Third, the circumstances that would allow for false internal representation should be clarified. High ambiguity in attributions or interpretations that allows for distortions of reality would make self‐deception feasible as suggested by previous theories and research (Sloman et al, 2010 ; Zhong et al, 2019 ). Self‐deception was more often observed when the unsupported evidence for false belief is vague (Sloman et al, 2010 ; Zhong et al, 2019 ).…”

“…High ambiguity in attributions or interpretations that allows for distortions of reality would make self‐deception feasible as suggested by previous theories and research (Sloman et al, 2010 ; Zhong et al, 2019 ). Self‐deception was more often observed when the unsupported evidence for false belief is vague (Sloman et al, 2010 ; Zhong et al, 2019 ). When the feedback on the task uses precise terms rather than vague terms (Sloman et al, 2010 ) or the answer keys are not easily accessible (Zhong et al, 2019 ), participants would then be less likely to distort reality.…”

“…Researchers used cheating paradigms where cheating opportunities were provided to foster false beliefs and self‐deception was operationally defined as a false conception of one's task performance (Zoe Chance et al, 2015 ; Zoë Chance et al, 2011 ; Ren et al, 2018 ; Zhong et al, 2019 ). Despite increasing empirical research on self‐deception in recent years (Ren et al, 2018 ; Schwardmann & van der Weele, 2019 ; Smith et al, 2017 ; van der Leer & McKay, 2017 ), it still lacks consensus on its operational definitions, antecedents of self‐deception, and knowledge of the cognitive process.…”

“…Self‐deception was more often observed when the unsupported evidence for false belief is vague (Sloman et al, 2010 ; Zhong et al, 2019 ). When the feedback on the task uses precise terms rather than vague terms (Sloman et al, 2010 ) or the answer keys are not easily accessible (Zhong et al, 2019 ), participants would then be less likely to distort reality.…”

“…In this sense, cheating tasks that offer individuals cheating opportunities to elevate their perceived performance, are one of the qualified options. By applying cheating tasks in self‐deception studies, previous studies tested participants' task performance and predictions in solving general knowledge tests (Zoe Chance et al, 2015 ; Zoë Chance et al, 2011 ; Ren et al, 2018 ; Zhong et al, 2019 ). The mismatch between actual ability and predictions suggests the occurrence of self‐deception.…”