The noun adherence is related to the verb adhere, meaning âto stick.â If something adheres, it sticks it to something, like a bumper stick that adheres to a car or a person who adheres to a plan, not changing it along the way.
Definition of motivation for English Language Learners. : the act or process of giving someone a reason for doing something : the act or process of motivating someone. : the condition of being eager to act or work : the condition of being motivated.
Clearly, motivated reasoning is emotion driven. It seems to be assumed by social scientists that motivated reasoning is driven by a desire to avoid cognitive dissonance. Self-delusion, in other words, feels good, and that's what motivates people to vehemently defend obvious falsehoods.