Inner speech as language process and cognitive tool.
Charles Fernyhough, Anna M Borghi
Trends in Cognitive Sciences December 2023 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2023.08.014 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Review Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Philosophy of mind |
| Keywords | Inner dialogue Inner monologue Self-regulation Self-talk Verbal thinking |
| Key findings | Argues that research has broadly supported a model of inner speech as a functional language process that can benefit cognition in various domains, and highlights the insight that inner speech is an embodied experience with varied subjective qualities that can be modeled in artificial systems and potentially decoded via brain-computer interfaces. Identifies understanding individual differences and mapping form to function across subtypes as future challenges. |
Abstract
Many people report a form of internal language known as inner speech (IS). This review examines recent growth of research interest in the phenomenon, which has broadly supported a theoretical model in which IS is a functional language process that can confer benefits for cognition in a range of domains. A key insight to have emerged in recent years is that IS is an embodied experience characterized by varied subjective qualities, which can be usefully modeled in artificial systems and whose neural signals have the potential to be decoded through advancing brain-computer interface technologies. Challenges for future research include understanding individual differences in IS and mapping form to function across IS subtypes.
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| The lived experience of psychosis: a bottom-up review co-written by experts by experience and academics. Individuals with lived experience of psychosis, family members, and carers | 2022 | Co-written bottom-up review | |
| From autopoiesis to neurophenomenology: Francisco Varela's exploration of the biophysics of being. | 2003 | Review |
Citations in the library
Cited by 11
- Two separate neural pathways, lateral and medial, for sensory decisions in mammals: switching of attention between the outer and inner cognitive worlds. Frontiers in Neuroscience 2025
- The Enigma of the Silent Mind: What Have We Learned About Anauralia? Auditory Perception & Cognition April 3, 2026
- Higher-Level Cognition Under Predictive Processing: Structural Representations and Grounded Cognition Minds and Machines March 19, 2026
- Momentary dynamics of inner speech varieties, auditory verbal hallucinations, and affect in schizophrenia spectrum disorders: an experience sampling study. Psychological Medicine January 12, 2026
- The Cognitive and Neural Dimensions of Consciousness in Self-Inquiry Practice Mind and Matter June 30, 2026
and 6 more in the library
Cites 6
- Bridging phenomenology and neural mechanisms of inner speech: ALE meta-analysis on egocentricity and spontaneity in a dual-mechanistic framework. Neuroimage November 15, 2023
- Resampling (Narrative) Stream of Consciousness: Mind Wandering, Inner Speech, and Reading as Reversed Introspection MFS: Modern Fiction Studies December 1, 2022
- Dialogical Consciousness and Descriptive Experience Sampling: Implications for the Study of Intrapersonal Communication in Sport Frontiers in Psychology April 3, 2019
- Investigating Multiple Streams of Consciousness: Using Descriptive Experience Sampling to Explore Internally and Externally Directed Streams of Thought. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience December 6, 2018
- Inner Speech: Development, Cognitive Functions, Phenomenology, and Neurobiology Psychological Bulletin May 25, 2015
and 1 more in the library