George
Posts: 316
Joined: Feb. 2006
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I think a big factor is simple obsession. People develop or come across a beautiful theory and become so wedded to it that they become blind to the ugly facts. They have invested so much intellectual and emotional capital in their idea that it becomes impossible for them to question it in any serious way.
There have been more than a few single-theory maniacs in science. The man who first fully developed the theory of protective colouration (camoflage) in animals in the 19th century ended up claiming that all animal colouration had a protective function. (I forget his name, can anyone remind me?) He went through some serious contortions explaining how male peacock plumage was camoflage (blue neck silhoutted against the sky, the pale eyes on the tail feathers resembling a sun-dappled forest floor, etc.).
There's also the loss of face that would come about by recanting after defending a losing theory so vigourously.
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