The internal voice that provides negative commentary about oneself, often characterized by harsh judgment and unrealistic standards. This psychological concept represents the internalized critical messages from past experiences.
Coined in modern psychotherapy, combining 'inner' from Old English 'inra' meaning interior, with 'critic' from Greek 'kritikos'. The term gained prominence through Gestalt therapy and self-help movements in the 1970s.
The inner critic often speaks in the voice of early caregivers or authority figures, making it feel incredibly authoritative even when it's completely wrong. Many people are shocked to discover they would never speak to a friend the way their inner critic speaks to them.
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