Editing Intrapersonal communication (section)

== Definition and essential features ==
Intrapersonal communication is [[communication]] with oneself.{{sfn|UMN staff|2010}}{{sfn|Danesi|2009|p=164}} It takes place within a person. Larry Barker and Gordon Wiseman define it as "the creating, functioning, and evaluating of symbolic processes which operate primarily within oneself".{{sfn|Barker|Wiseman|1966|p=173}}{{sfn|Wrench|Punyanunt-Carter|Thweatt|2020|loc=[https://milnepublishing.geneseo.edu/interpersonalcommunication/chapter/3/ 3. Intrapersonal Communication]}}{{sfn|Watson|Hill|2015|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=IdGBCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA147 147–148]}} Its most typical forms are self-talk and inner dialogue. For example, when an employee decides to leave work early, they may engage in an inner dialogue by mentally going through possible negative comments from their boss and potential responses. Other inner [[experience]]s are also commonly included, such as [[imagination]], [[Mental image|visualization]], and [[memory]].{{sfn|UMN staff|2010}} As a form of communication, it involves the sending and receiving of [[message]]s. It is a self-to-self communication, in the sense that the sender and the receiver is the same person.{{sfn|Sullivan|2009|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=mx51AwAAQBAJ&pg=PT311 271]}} It contrasts with interpersonal communication, in which sender and receiver are distinct persons.{{sfn|Barker|Wiseman|1966|p=173}}{{sfn|Lederman|2002|pp=[https://www.encyclopedia.com/media/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/intrapersonal-communication 490–492]|loc=Intrapersonal communication}} Intrapersonal communication is examined by the discipline known as [[communication studies]].{{sfn|Lederman|2002|pp=[https://www.encyclopedia.com/media/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/intrapersonal-communication 490–492]|loc=Intrapersonal communication}}

Some theorists, like James Watson and Anne Hill, restrict the definition of intrapersonal communication to inner experiences or "what goes on inside our heads", like talking to oneself within one's [[mind]].{{sfn|Watson|Hill|2015|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=IdGBCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA147 147–148]}}{{sfn|UMN staff|2010}} But in a wider sense, it also includes external forms of self-to-self communication, such as speaking to oneself aloud during [[private speech]] or writing a diary or a shopping list. In this regard, it only matters that the sender and the receiver is the same person but it does not matter whether an external medium was used in the process.<ref>{{multiref2 |1={{harvnb|Lederman|2002|pp=[https://www.encyclopedia.com/media/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/intrapersonal-communication 490–492]|loc=Intrapersonal communication}} |2={{harvnb|Ehrlich|2000|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=GmlrWZ_xE1kC&pg=PA38 38–41]}} |3={{harvnb|Sullivan|2009|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=mx51AwAAQBAJ&pg=PT311 271]}} |4={{harvnb|Barker|Wiseman|1966|p=173}} }}</ref> A slightly different conception is presented by Piotr K. Oleś et al. They reject the idea that sender and receiver have to be the same person. This is based on the idea that one can have imaginary dialogues with other people, such as a friend, a teacher, a lost relative, or a celebrity.{{sfn|Oleś|Brinthaupt|Dier|Polak|2020|p=2}}{{sfn|Honeycutt|Ford|2001|pp=315–345}} Oleś et al. hold instead that the hallmark of intrapersonal communication is that it only happens in the mind of one person.{{sfn|Oleś|Brinthaupt|Dier|Polak|2020|p=2}} Some scholars see the process of searching and interpreting information as a central aspect of intrapersonal communication. This applies specifically to inner monologues and reflections on oneself, other people, and the environment.{{sfn|Farley|1992|pp=481–484}}{{sfn|Watson|Hill|2015|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=IdGBCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA147 147–148]}} Frank J. Macke and Dean Barnlund stress that the mechanical exchange of messages is not sufficient and that intrapersonal communication has to do with meaning and making sense of things.{{sfn|Catt|Eicher-Catt|2010|pp=34–36, 43–44}}{{sfn|Barnlund|2013|p=48}} In this regard, intrapersonal communication can be distinguished from intraorganismic communication, which takes place below the personal level as an exchange of information between organs or cells.{{sfn|Vocate|2012|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=fZOk5Fpuj54C&pg=PA196 196]}}

Intrapersonal communication need not be cut off from outer influences and often happens as a reaction to them. For example, hearing a familiar piece of music may stir up memories that lead to an internal dialog with past selves.{{sfn|Watson|Hill|2015|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=IdGBCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA147 147–148]}} In a similar sense, intrapersonal communication is not restricted to situations in which a person is alone. Instead, it also happens in social circumstances and may occur simultaneously with [[interpersonal communication]].{{sfn|Lederman|2002|pp=[https://www.encyclopedia.com/media/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/intrapersonal-communication 490–492]|loc=Intrapersonal communication}} This is the case, for example, when interpreting what another person has said and when formulating a response before enunciating it. Some theorists, like Mary J. Farley, hold that intrapersonal communication is an essential part of all communication and, therefore, always accompanies interpersonal communication.{{sfn|Farley|1992|pp=481–484}}{{sfn|Honeycutt|2014|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=1hPoBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA249 249]}}{{sfn|Steinberg|2007|p=62}}

In the context of organizations, the term "autocommunication" is sometimes used as a synonym. It is employed to describe self-communication in the workspace. For example, synchronous autocommunication is used when mentally reassuring oneself or drafting a letter. Asynchronous autocommunication, on the other hand, takes the form of reminders or diaries.{{sfn|Jensen|2022|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=ZF9cEAAAQBAJ&pg=PT120 120]}}{{sfn|Carroll|2016|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=g3-zDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA55 55]}} This term is also sometimes used in [[semiotics]].{{sfn|Lotman|1990|p=20|loc=2. Autocommunication: T and 'Other' as addressees}}{{sfn|Bottigheimer|1989|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=5VOZBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA197 197]}}