cognitive distortion

Cognitive bias – Systematic pattern of deviation from norm or rationality in judgment

Cognitive dissonance – Psychological stress resulting from multiple contradictory beliefs, ideas, or values held at the same time

Defence mechanism – Unconscious psychological mechanism that reduces anxiety arising from unacceptable or potentially harmful stimuli

Delusion – Firm and fixed belief in that which is based on inadequate grounding

Destabilisation – Attempts to undermine political, military or economic power

Emotion and memory – Critical factors contributing to the emotional enhancement effect on human memory

Gaslighting – Form of psychological abuse

Illusion – Distortion of the perception of reality

language and thought – The study of how language influences thought

negativity bias – Tendency to give more importance to negative experiences

Parataxic distortion – Inclination to skew perceptions of others based on fantasy

rationalization (psychology) – Attempt to justify behavior or attitudes with inappropriate logical reasoning