It is common to have conversations with oneself to make decisions or reflect on something that just happened. This type of dialogue is known as internal dialogue. When it comes to better understanding the effects that thought can have, it is enough, for example, to think that we are biting the pulp of a lemon, a gesture that for most people is enough to close the mouth and produce greater salivation.
If you want to better understand how it works, in this Psychology-Online article, we will tell you What is internal dialogue and how to work on it effectively with different strategies, as well as the different types of internal dialogues that exist.
What is internal dialogue
The inner dialogue is set of considerations, assumptions, rules, rightsjudgments, expectations, memories, evaluations and attributions of meanings that are constantly activated in response to stimuli coming from the external environment (events, other people’s behavior, etc.) or internal (physical sensations, thoughts, memories, etc.). According to each person, it is experienced with different speeds, tonalities and non-verbal nuances depending on the emotional state that is experienced.
According to Vygotsky’s theory of language and thought development, the internalization of language is a crucial evolutionary step, since it allows the formation of higher psychic functions. Around the age of 3, language is divided into two functions:
- Communicative: directed towards others.
- Egocentric: directed towards oneself to guide thinking, solve problems and plan one’s actions (normative language).
This internal dialogue with oneself is initially produced by the infant out loud and is intended to be internalized when second childhood arrives around 7-8 years of age. The internal dialogue collects all the thoughts that a person directs to himself and, through it, the actions of each one are guided.
In fact, every time we talk to ourselves we can decide to change our attitude in certain circumstances, instilling courage or inducing resignation. For example, telling yourself “everything will be fine”, “I can do this”.
Types of internal dialogue
Internalized thinking can be helpful or cause a lot of suffering depending on how it is used. Next, we will show you what types of internal dialogue exist so that you know how to differentiate them.
Positive self-talk
Positive self-talk reinforces self-esteem and security when carrying out certain actions and directs us with determination towards our objectives. Good internal speech helps regulate emotions, direct attention and plan actions for the future, among other benefits. A good internal dialogue also allows us to weave the plots of past experiences.
Negative self-talk
The words we address to ourselves are not always constructive. Sometimes we work against ourselves with negative thoughts and statements that restrict our access to our personal resources. If one’s inner speech feeds anxiety, depression and emotional states that become dysfunctional, it is necessary to review, correct and reformulate it. Below you will see the most frequent types of negative internal dialogue:
- Self-critical dialogue: the person criticizes himself in a negative way. He reduces the value of his achievements and exalts his own defects and limits. She doesn’t have much confidence in herself, so she is in constant confrontation to find what can complete her. She feels very frustrated for not having achieved the expected results. In this article you will see.
- Catastrophic dialogue: feels a strong need to prevent situations classified as risky due to the belief that if something negative happens, it will surely be to oneself. State of hyperalertness and anticipation of events, which generates growing anxiety about the future, control and a lot of wear and tear.
- Victimist dialogue: firmly believes that life is very difficult and complicated. He constantly sees himself in a dead end, without resources to overcome the situations that life presents him and has a negative view of life and his own capabilities. He feels a great lack of protection and hope.
- Self-demanding dialogue: the person knows too much, which makes him tired and does not accept mistakes. All of this leads her to fall into chronic stress, fatigue, lack of resources and the conviction that she must do more and more to achieve her goals.
How to work internal dialogue
Self-talk can be trained to achieve better results in life. The technique based on internal dialogue is known as self talk and its objective is to develop the ability to self-induce the desired emotional stateFor example, self-control, attention, concentration, energy, positive motivational charge or optimal management of one’s own resources.
If you are wondering how to improve internal dialogue, here we give you the best tips so that the self talk be effective:
- Speaks in second person: Studies show that it is more effective to speak with the second person singular than to use the I.
- Give yourself brief and direct instructions: stay focused, relax, etc.
- Replace the “I must” with the “I want”: I want puts you in a leadership situation and motivates you to manage the situation better, for example, “I really want to win this race.”
- Eliminate – or at least limit – the word “NO”: The human brain does not immediately perceive denial. In order to deny a thought, the mind must first visualize it and then “erase” it. To develop solutions and make the most of resources, it is much better to get used to using the positive form. For example, saying “focus” instead of “don’t get distracted.”
- Recognize dysfunctional thoughts and turn them into functional ones– Recognize your discouraging and negative phrases and practice turning them into positive and motivating phrases. With practice, it will become more natural and automatic each time. In this article you will find examples of.
This article is merely informative, at Psychology-Online we do not have the power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.
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Bibliography
- Barbier, A. (2021). Il potere (non troppo) nacosto del internal dialogue. Recovered from: https://www.psicoterapiapersona.it/2021/02/07/il-potere-non-troppo-nascosto-del-dialogo-interno/
- Malaguti, D. (2021). Impara a parlare a estesso! The 5 rules of effective Self Talk. Retrieved from: https://www.davidemalaguti.com/self-talk/
- Rubano, C. (2022). “Parlo con me”: internal dialogue and mental rumination. Retrieved from: https://www.crescita-personale.it/articoli/crescita-personale/psicologia/dialogo-interiore-e-ruminazione-mentale.html