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.
DEDUCTIVE, INDUCTIVE, AND ABDUCTIVE REASONING. Reasoning is the process of using existing knowledge to draw conclusions, make predictions, or construct explanations. Three methods of reasoning are the deductive, inductive, and abductive approaches. Deductive reasoning: conclusion guaranteed. Deductive reasoning starts with the assertion of a general rule and proceeds from there to a guaranteed specific conclusion.