Others in Mind
Social Origins of Self-Consciousness

Based on empirical observations, this innovative book explores self-consciousness, how it originates and how it shapes our lives.

Philippe Rochat (Author)

9780521729659, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 9 February 2009

264 pages, 7 b/w illus.
23.1 x 15.2 x 2.3 cm, 0.41 kg

'… an ambitious and fruitful project … Rochat's theory of the social construction of the self will undoubtedly be valuable for both philosophers and psychologists, with the caveat that there are unexplored theoretical issues in need of development.' Philosophical Psychology

In this book, Philippe Rochat explores self-consciousness, how it originates and how it shapes our lives, arguably the most important and revealing of all psychological problems. Why are we so prone to guilt and embarrassment? Why do we care so much about how others see us, about our reputation? What are the origins of such afflictions? Rochat argues that it is because we are members of a species that evolved the unique propensity to reflect upon themselves as an object of thoughts; an object of thoughts that is potentially evaluated by others. Based on empirical observations, this is a book of ideas, tapping into both developmental and anthropological phenomena and guided by strong existential intuitions regarding the human condition. At the core of these intuitions, there is the idea that human psychic life is predominantly determined by what we imagine others perceive of us.

Foreword
Introduction: main ideas
1. Self-conscious species
2. Six propositions
3. Variety of self-reflective mind states
4. Mind states in development
5. Birth of self-consciousness
6. Shame and self-knowledge
7. Roots of guilt
8. Giving and sharing
9. Origins of owning and sharing
10. Social construction of identity
Conclusion: moral space and the self
Post-script note.

Subject Areas: The self, ego, identity, personality [JMS], Cognition & cognitive psychology [JMR], Child & developmental psychology [JMC]