Publication 7365

In this chapter, we argue that explicit (refl ective) self-conscious thinking is founded on an implicit (pre-refl ective) form of self-awareness built into the very structure of phenomenal consciousness. In broad strokes, our argument is that a theory denying the existence of pre-refl ective or minimal self-awareness has diffi culties explaining a number of essential features of explicit fi rst-person self-reference, and that this will impede a proper understanding of certain types of psychopathology.