introspection.

The examination of one’s own thoughts, feelings or motives.

Use it for

Words that belong together

• careful introspection
• introspection about motives

On the page

Introspection helped him notice the resentment beneath his account of principle.

The study used introspection cautiously because reported motives could be incomplete or reconstructed.

Usage notes

Primary category: psychology / character / human behavior. Forms: Usually uncountable. Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings. Established modern English lexical item. No separate regional spelling or grammatical inflection entry. Writing functions: characterization, motivation, interpersonal behavior, self-evaluation. Disciplines: psychology, human behavior, character writing. Commonness: moderately common.