Self-talk in the third person allows safe control of the emotions

Help soliloquy in self-control?
Some people talk to themselves in stressful situations. Do such self-talk lead to positive effects or are they more of an expression of mental health problems? Researchers have now found that self-talk in third person help sufferers control their emotions.

The researchers from Michigan State University and the University of Michigan found that self-talk in the third person helps people to control themselves and help them better control their own emotions. In a press release from the university, the researchers report on the results of their study.

Human emotions, such as fears, grief and anger, can be a major burden for those affected. In particularly stressful or emotional situations, some people start talking to themselves. Researchers have now found that self-talk in the third person helps to better control emotions. (Image: WavebreakMediaMicro / fotolia.com)

How do self-talk affect the third person??
Self-talk in the third person can be a relatively effortless form of self-restraint, the experts explain. For example, if a man by the name of John is very upset and upset, a reflection of his feelings in the third person (why is John upset?) Helps to control the emotions more effectively than if the same person were a reflection in the first person (why I'm excited?).

Established effect helps to regulate emotions
It is better to have a self-talk in the third person to control his emotions. According to the researchers, this process leads to a change in thinking. This type of conversation causes sufferers to think about themselves in ways they would think about other people. Evidence for this effect is found in the human brain, explains Professor Jason Moser of Michigan State University. Conversations of this kind can help people to get some psychological distance from their experiences. This effect can be very useful for the regulation of emotions, explain the expert further.

Self-talk in third person reduces the emotional brain activity
The current study involved two different experiments. In one experiment, participants looked at neutral and disturbing images. The subjects responded to the pictures with both self-talk in the first person, as well as in the third person, explain the researchers. All the while, brain activity was monitored by an electroencephalograph. In response to the disturbing images (such as a man holding a gun to his head), the participants' emotional brain activity decreased in just one second as they talked in the third person.

Self Talk: A Strategy to Regulate Emotions?
The physicians also found that using the third person in self-talk was no more costly for the brain than having one's self-talk in the first person. Self-talk in the third person can well be used as a strategy to regulate one's own emotions, says Professor Moser.

Subjects had to reflect painful memories from the past
The second experiment looked at how participants reflected painful memories from their past through self-talk. These monologues were conducted both in the first person and in the third person. During the investigation, the brain activity of the subjects was measured, say the scientists.

Further research is needed
Participants showed less activity in a brain region involved in reflecting on painful emotional experiences when talking to the third person. This indicates better emotional regulation, the experts explain. In addition, the self-talk in the third person did not require more brain capacity than the self-talk in the first person. The data from these two complementary experiments suggest that self-talk in the third person represents a relatively effortless form of emotion regulation. However, further research is needed to better understand the effect. (As)