I, Me, Mine: Variations on the Theme of Selfness

Scholars have often speculated about the nature of the self. In this article I contend that there is no such mythical beast. Instead, I argue that there are likely a number of different mental subsystems that contribute to self-relevant behavior and to selfness. These subsystems contain different structures, reflect the operation of different processes, and may reflect different biological substrates. Accordingly, I contend that research and thinking about the self needs to be very clear about which aspect of selfness lies at their core. I suggest that such specificity is necessary for an orderly accumulation of knowledge in research that explores the topic of the self.