Definition of physiological. 1  1 : of or relating to physiology. 2  2 : characteristic of or appropriate to an organism's healthy or normal functioning the sodium level was physiological. 3  3 : differing in, involving, or affecting physiological factors a physiological strain of bacteria.
Motivated reasoning is confirmation bias taken to the next level. Motivated reasoning leads people to confirm what they already believe, while ignoring contrary data. But it also drives people to develop elaborate rationalizations to justify holding beliefs that logic and evidence have shown to be wrong.
This is an example of a syllogism, a form of deductive reasoning. Deductive reasoning is a type of logic where general statements, or premises, are used to form a specific conclusion. The other type of deductive reasoning is conditional reasoning.