First of all, “Playing Mental Defense” (March 2010) was an excellent article. I would like to offer clarification on a key technical point, however. Mr. Pestal correctly identifies “cognitive dissonance” as the condition of psychological discomfort experienced when competing cognitions occur. He also correctly described the human tendency to attempt to 288
Faulty Dissonance
First of all, "Playing Mental Defense" (March 2010) was an excellent article. I would like to offer clarification on a key technical point, however. Mr. Pestal correctly identifies "cognitive dissonance" as the condition of psychological discomfort experienced when competing cognitions occur. He also correctly described the human tendency to attempt to resolve the cognitive dissonance by utilizing denial, rationalization and other unproductive defense mechanisms as we seek to return to a state of psychological comfort. We in psychology refer to this process as "dissonance reduction" or "dissonance resolution."
Key Takeaways:
- Cognitive dissonance serves as a crucial "mental annunciator light" for pilots, indicating vulnerability and prompting safe decision-making; the danger lies in unproductive resolution methods like denial, rather than the dissonance itself.
- The article clarifies technical aviation concepts, correcting a previous error by stating a skid involves too much yaw for the bank angle, and emphasizing airborne radar's limitations in detecting all hazardous weather phenomena, urging caution against flying into radar shadows.
- FAA regulations for wake turbulence separation during intersection departures require a three-minute delay from the preceding heavier aircraft's takeoff, with specific distance-based rules applicable only in particular scenarios.
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