Subjectself

Subjectself is a term used in philosophy of mind and cognitive science to describe a unified account of subjectivity that links the experiencing subject with the evolving self. It functions as a label for theories that try to fuse first-person experience with models of identity that persist over time.

The term combines subject and self and has appeared in interdisciplinary discussions seeking to bridge the immediacy of subjective experience with third-person explanations of continuity, personality, and agency. It is often deployed in debates about how conscious experience relates to selfhood in both humans and artificial systems.

In this framework, the subjectself is an active self-model that generates a sense of agency and maintains continuity across thoughts, memories, and actions. It is not merely a passive witness to events but a structure that helps organize experience and guide behavior.

It is commonly contrasted with views that treat the subject and self as entirely separate or with accounts that reduce selfhood to neural processes alone. By emphasizing the interplay between experience and self-representation, the concept aims to clarify how people perceive themselves as unified agents.

Applications appear in discussions on consciousness, personal identity, and the design of artificial agents, where maintaining a self-model supports goal-directed behavior, learning, and adaptation in changing environments.

Critics warn that subjectself can be vague and may conflate epistemic perspective with ontological status. Some argue it risks circular reasoning if the self is defined by its own modeling.

See also: consciousness; self; subjectivity; sense of agency; personal identity; self-model.