Internal monologue, also known as inner voice, internal speech, or verbal stream of consciousness

Stream of consciousness

In literary criticism, stream of consciousness is a narrative mode that seeks to portray an individual's point of view by giving the written equivalent of the character's thought processes, either in a loose interior monologue, or in connection to his or her actions.Stream-of-consciousness writing...

is thinking in word

Word

In language, a word is the smallest free form that may be uttered in isolation with semantic or pragmatic content . This contrasts with a morpheme, which is the smallest unit of meaning but will not necessarily stand on its own...

s. It also refers to the semi-constant internal monologue

Monologue

In theatre, a monologue is a speech presented by a single character, most often to express their thoughts aloud, though sometimes also to directly address another character or the audience. Monologues are common across the range of dramatic media...

 one has with oneself at a conscious or semi-conscious level.

Much of what people consciously report "thinking about" may be thought of as an internal monologue, a conversation with oneself. Some of this can be considered as speech rehearsal.

Buddhist perspectives

In the Zen tradition, there is the phrase "Nen nen ju shin ki" which means something like "Thought following thought." Sometimes this concept is translated with the help of the words "first nen" and "second nen" where each "nen" is a reaction to the previous one. We can think of our thoughts, memories, visualizations, or sensations as good or bad, and as true or false. Particularly with the judgment of word-thought as true or false we continue this reactionary "nen" process. Another way to think of thoughts is as in context, sort of like a Jenga puzzle or concept map, where each thought is part of a system and is related to other thoughts.

Related concepts

In fiction, when one person reads the mind

Telepathy

Telepathy , is the induction of mental states from one mind to another. The term was coined in 1882 by the classical scholar Fredric W. H. Myers, a founder of the Society for Psychical Research, and has remained more popular than the more-correct expression thought-transference...

 of another, it is often described as being able to hear this internal monologue as if it were said out loud.

When people read they actually move their muscles ever so slightly as if they were speaking, while they are internally monologuing; this is called subvocalizing.

There is uncertainty about what the source of these internal sentences are in some conditions. Attribution

Attribution (psychology)

Attribution is a concept in social psychology referring to how individuals explain causes of behavior and events. Attribution theory is an umbrella term for various theories that attempt to explain these processes. Fritz Heider first proposed a theory of attribution The Psychology of Interpersonal...

 for a recently produced internal sentence may lead to concerns over schizophrenia

Schizophrenia

Schizophrenia is a mental disorder characterized by a disintegration of thought processes and of emotional responsiveness. It most commonly manifests itself as auditory hallucinations, paranoid or bizarre delusions, or disorganized speech and thinking, and it is accompanied by significant social...

, hallucinations, or hearing voices. Experiments have shown that "cerebral asymmetry is reduced in schizophrenia." That while performing "verb-generation" and "semantic decision" tasks the people with schizophrenia showed an "increased activation in the right hemisphere." While in psychosis a typical schizophrenic may speak in word salads and may write profusely

Hypergraphia

Hypergraphia is an overwhelming urge to write. It is not itself a disorder, but can be associated with temporal lobe changes in epilepsy and mania in the context of bipolar disorder.-Causes:...

.

Contemplation

Contemplation

The word contemplation comes from the Latin word contemplatio. Its root is also that of the Latin word templum, a piece of ground consecrated for the taking of auspices, or a building for worship, derived either from Proto-Indo-European base *tem- "to cut", and so a "place reserved or cut out" or...

 attempts to calm the internal voice by various means.

See also

• Free association
  Free association (psychology)
  Free association is a technique used in psychoanalysis which was originally devised by Sigmund Freud out of the hypnotic method of his mentor and coworker, Josef Breuer....
  
  
• Subvocalization
  Subvocalization
  Subvocalization, or silent speech, is defined as the internal speech made when reading a word, thus allowing the reader to imagine the sound of the word as it is read. This is a natural process when reading and helps to reduce cognitive load, and it helps the mind to access meanings to enable it to...
  
  
• Internal discourse
  Internal discourse
  An inner discourse, or internal discourse, is a constructive act of the human mind and a tool for discovering new knowledge and making decisions. Along with feelings such as joy, anger, fear, etc., and sensory awareness, it is one of the few aspects of the processing of information and other mental...
  
  
• Introspection
  Introspection
  Introspection is the self-observation and reporting of conscious inner thoughts, desires and sensations. It is a conscious and purposive process relying on thinking, reasoning, and examining one's own thoughts, feelings, and, in more spiritual cases, one's soul...
  
  
• Interior locution
  Interior locution
  An interior locution is a mystical concept used by various religions, including the Roman Catholic Church. In an interior locution, a person reportedly receives a set of ideas, thoughts, or imaginations from an outside spiritual source. Interior locutions are most often reported during prayers...
  
  
• Intrapersonal communication
  Intrapersonal communication
  Intrapersonal communication is language use or thought internal to the communicator. It can be useful to envision intrapersonal communication occurring in the mind of the individual in a model which contains a sender, receiver, and feedback loop.-Definitions:...
  
  
• Talk aloud protocol
• David Strassman
  David Strassman
  David Strassman, is an American ventriloquist who is best known for his ventriloquism act with the characters Ted E. Bare and Chuck Wood. He began performing magic at the age of twelve after a visit to the Magic Castle in Hollywood.-Biography:David Strassman is the second of four children. His...
  
  
• Telepathy
  Telepathy
  Telepathy , is the induction of mental states from one mind to another. The term was coined in 1882 by the classical scholar Fredric W. H. Myers, a founder of the Society for Psychical Research, and has remained more popular than the more-correct expression thought-transference...
  
  
• Cognitive linguistics
  Cognitive linguistics
  In linguistics, cognitive linguistics refers to the branch of linguistics that interprets language in terms of the concepts, sometimes universal, sometimes specific to a particular tongue, which underlie its forms...
  
  
• Philosophy of mind
  Philosophy of mind
  Philosophy of mind is a branch of philosophy that studies the nature of the mind, mental events, mental functions, mental properties, consciousness and their relationship to the physical body, particularly the brain. The mind-body problem, i.e...
  
  
• Mind-wandering
  Mind-wandering
  Mind-wandering is the experience of thoughts not remaining on a single topic for a long period of time, particularly when people are not engaged in an attention-demanding task...
  
  

• Self-awareness
  Self-awareness
  Self-awareness is the capacity for introspection and the ability to reconcile oneself as an individual separate from the environment and other individuals...
  
  
• Self-Schema
  Self-Schema
  The term self-schema refers to the beliefs and ideas people have about themselves. These beliefs are used to guide and organize information processing, especially when the information is significant to the self. Self-schemas are important to a person's overall self-concept.- General self-schema...
  
  
• William James
  William James
  William James was a pioneering American psychologist and philosopher who was trained as a physician. He wrote influential books on the young science of psychology, educational psychology, psychology of religious experience and mysticism, and on the philosophy of pragmatism...
  
  
• Visual thinking
  Visual thinking
  Picture thinking, visual thinking , visual/spatial learning or right brained learning is the common phenomenon of thinking through visual processing using the part of the brain that is emotional and creative to organize information in an intuitive and simultaneous way.Thinking in pictures, is one...
  
  
• Human self-reflection
  Human self-reflection
  Human self-reflection is the capacity of humans to exercise introspection and the willingness to learn more about their fundamental nature, purpose and essence. The earliest historical records demonstrate the great interest which humanity has had in itself...
  
  
• Consciousness
  Consciousness
  Consciousness is a term that refers to the relationship between the mind and the world with which it interacts. It has been defined as: subjectivity, awareness, the ability to experience or to feel, wakefulness, having a sense of selfhood, and the executive control system of the mind...
  
  
• Stream of consciousness (narrative mode)
• Language of thought
  Language of thought
  In philosophy of mind, the language of thought hypothesis put forward by American philosopher Jerry Fodor describes thoughts as represented in a "language" that allows complex thoughts to be built up by combining simpler thoughts in various ways...
  
  
• Language and thought
  Language and thought
  A variety of different authors, theories and fields purport influences between language and thought.Many point out the seemingly common-sense realization that upon introspection we seem to think in the language we speak...