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This is the commitment and consistency effect.

The extreme cases can be found in cults where followers cling tighter to their beliefs once exposed.

A great example are the followers of Harold Camping, the Christian radio broadcaster who predicted the end of the world a few years ago, and kept re-predicting when it never came.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harold_Camping




But to complete the Camping story, and validate your argument (you still believe only the original, not the recant); Camping stopped after 2 failed dates, re-read his source material, and stated that he no longer believed that anyone could predict the end of the world. (Source: Netflix documentary on Camping)




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