Intrapersonal communication, or communication within the individual, is an area of study that is fundamental to the study of all communication. Communication can be thought of as beginning with the self. When a person talks of communication with others, he or she speaks of interpersonal communication, or communication between one individual (the self) and another. Intrapersonal communication limits itself to communication within the individual. It is communication that takes place within the individual when he or she is communicating with others, or simply, when he or she is alone and thinking to himself or herself. When a person says to himself or herself, "way to go," he or she is engaging in intrapersonal communication. Intrapersonal communication, however, has been less studied than many other areas of communication.

Studying Intrapersonal Communication

While the literature on communication has included the area of intrapersonal communication since the 1980s, it...