> just move on instead of having to defend my carefully crafted personality with all the authority, credibility, etc. attached to it.

I don't buy most of the rest of it, but this is a really good point. I've seen people "defend" untenable positions, and the only reason I can come up with is they didn't want to be seen as wrong.

I'd say it's only one element of a more complex equation, but it's a big one.