How to Read Your Own Mind: A Cognitive Theory of Self-Consciousness
Consciousness January 23, 2003 DOI: 10.1093/oso/9780199241286.003.0007 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Key points | Argues that self-awareness, understood as the process of attributing mental states to oneself, has a philosophical pedigree dating to Descartes and has become a central topic in cognitive science, yet most mind-reading research has focused on attributing states to others, with fewer accounts addressing self-attribution. |
Abstract
Abstract The topic of self-awareness has an impressive philosophical pedigree, and sustained discussion of the topic goes back at least to Descartes. More recently, self-awareness has become a lively issue in the cognitive sciences, thanks largely to the emerging body of work on ‘mind-reading’, the process of attributing mental states to people (and other organisms). During the last fifteen years, the processes underlying mind-reading have been a major focus of attention in cognitive and developmental psychology. Most of this work has been concerned with the processes underlying the attribution of mental states to other people. However, a number of psychologists and philosophers have also proposed accounts of the mechanisms underlying the attribution of mental states to oneself. This process of reading one’s own mind or becoming self-aware will be our primary concern in this chapter.