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Showing posts from April 9, 2013

Self talk

Self-talk originates in early chil dhood as a device for self-regulation, an internalization of the voice of the infant's caretaker(s), allowing children to control impulses in the absence of supervision. Additionally, some theorize that humans are like other social animals (such as gibbons) that use calls to establish contact with other members of a group, alerting individuals to the presence of danger. For social animals, silence can be misinterpreted as a state of vulnerability and danger, creating feelings of unease; self-talk alleviates discomfort by creating a sense of contact. Over the years self-talk develops into an ongoing voiceover that often distorts as much as it elucidates. Clinical psychology and neuroscience demonstrates that self-deception is a prevalent characteristic, distorted by survival based agendas: people will unconsciously create puffed up self-appraisals to develop the confidence to attract a mate, or add self-diminishing thoughts to avoid threats. Denyi