Why we sometimes avoid the truth and other times can't stop looking for it

A new study by Prof. Yaniv Shani of the Coller School of Management at Tel Aviv University and Prof. Marcel Zeelenberg of the Tilburg School of Social and Behavioral Sciences reveals a surprising insight into how we deal with information. Contrary to the common view that "willful ignorance" is primarily a way to avoid moral responsibility toward others, the study offers a much broader explanation: at times we avoid information—and at times we deliberately seek painful information—to regulate our own emotions and manage psychological overload.

source https://phys.org/news/2025-12-truth.html