‘Linguistic Shrapnel’: Inner speech in borderline personality disorder and its relevance for self-familiarity. A philosophical review

Abstract

This paper sheds light on the role of inner speech and self-talk in Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) by providing a literature review of existing empirical studies on related phenomena. Building on these insights, it explores how processes of linguistic self-relation may affect an individual’s sense of self. More specifically, it examines how processes of inner speech contribute to the genesis and sustainment of key psychological phenomena associated with BPD, which likely manifest as experiences of self-estrangement and hinder the development of a stable sense of self. First, I review the empirical literature on BPD, providing an overview of insights into intrapersonal dialogicality, auditory verbal hallucinations, inner speech and self-talk in BPD. Second, I then connect these empirical results with a philosophical notion of self-familiarity by exploring how linguistic processes in one’s experience of self, world, and others can significantly challenge or even undermine the development and sustainment of self-familiarity. By understanding how overt or covert dialogues within oneself may support or disrupt self-familiarity, I suggest, it becomes evident that linguistic self-relation is a critical area for therapeutic change and recovery in BPD.