egocentric

Egocentric is an adjective describing a focus on oneself or a perspective centered on the self. In psychology and cognitive science, it also refers to a cognitive bias in which an individual has difficulty distinguishing their own point of view from that of others. The term derives from Latin ego, "I," and centrum, "center."

Developmental psychology: In Piaget's theory, egocentrism characterizes the preoperational stage (roughly ages 2 to 7), when children have trouble taking others' viewpoints. Later experiments show that children gradually acquire perspective-taking, although some residual egocentrism can persist. Egocentrism is not simply selfishness; it reflects cognitive development constraints.

Egocentric bias in adults: People often assume others share their beliefs or preferences (false-consensus effect) and may mispredict others' knowledge or feelings due to projection bias. Egocentric judgments can affect decision making, communication, and memory.

Spatial and neurocognitive usage: In neuroscience and psychology, egocentric refers to representations or frames of reference anchored to the observer, as opposed to allocentric representations anchored to objects or the environment. Egocentric neglect is a neurological condition in which patients ignore stimuli on the side opposite to a brain lesion relative to their own body.

In common usage, egocentric is sometimes used synonymously with self-centered, but in technical contexts it is more neutral and can refer to cognitive orientation rather than moral evaluation.