Why Your Internal Monologue Sounds Like Your Human Voice

When I Talk To Myself, My Brain Thinks I'm Talking To Someone Else

The human mind is a strange and beautiful thing. We're capable of so much — from splitting the atom to creating the internet to inventing lip gloss that smells like Play-Doh. But sometimes we forget that, and we find ourselves lacking in skills that might seem basic, but are actually essential to our ability to navigate and succeed in the world.

One of those skills is our ability to effectively communicate with ourselves.

For example, have you ever thought about why our internal voice sounds so much like our "regular" voice? One reason could be that it's one of the most effective ways for us to communicate with ourselves when there's no one else around.

Think about it — if you've ever said something out loud while thinking about how you felt about it before saying it, chances are you had a much more coherent and effective way of communicating your thoughts than if you had just tried to write them down. It's the same principle with the way we talk in our heads. We need to communicate clearly and effectively, so we use language that's easy to understand and remember.

But how exactly does this work? Well, psychologists have found that when we talk out loud (and especially when we say things that are important or meaningful), we engage different parts of our brains than when we read or write.

The brain regions that are activated by talking out loud aren't just used for speech — they're also used for memory retrieval, which means that the words you say out loud stick in your mind better than words you read or write.

Wilson Dávalos-Nieves, Co-founder of Collaboratory.
Collaboratory helps scientists discover and connect to potential collaborators.