Taylor says very little that is new on the subject of rationalization. He attempts to explain the dynamics of the process on a mechanistic basis. He believes rationalizing to be a form of 'compartment mind' believing. 'The rationalizer's reasons are intense beliefs, while other ideas are repressed, i.e. inhibited or dissociated. Complete integration is lacking in it. There are lines of division which separate the motivating causes from the professed reasons.'

He believes that the rationalization process is activated by the desire on the part of the individual to present a unified front to his environment, a desire for that unity which spells success in meeting the problems of life. He sees in an excessive amount of rationalization a loss of energy and directness, and also certain ethical implications.