Thought Control, Cognitive Effort and Physiognomy-Organismic Language: Three Expresive Manifestations of Inner Language at Human Experience

Abstract

The present article reports the results of a quantitative exploratory study whose objective was to identify interior language forms and its expressive manifestations in gestures. 50 university students were individually submitted to two events of inner language elicitation: an instrumental music and a story. After each stimulus participants were asked to reflect in silence the contents elicited by each stimulus, and then participate in a qualitative video-assisted interview. Gestural categories were coded and analyzed through descriptive statistical analysis, Pearson's correlation and principal component analysis. The results show three forms of inner language that are associated with different nonverbal expressive movements. First, there is an internal language at the service of the control of thought associated with nonverbal movements of control and voluntary search of thought. Second, there is evidence of a cognitive effort inner language, which involves iterative gestures that manifest information processing. Finally, an internal physiognomy-organismic language, associated with nonverbal expressions that manifest an interiority full of sense. These findings contribute to the understanding of the symbols formation, describing their internal and external forms, understanding the human experience as unique, total and holistic.