selftargeted

Selftargeted is an adjective used to describe actions, effects, or processes whose target is the actor itself or one of its own components. In this usage, the term emphasizes self-directedness or self-referential targeting, as opposed to targeting external objects or agents. The form is a straightforward coinage from self and targeted; in published literature you will occasionally see hyphenated forms such as self-targeted or selftargeted, depending on the style guide.

In biology and medicine, selftargeted commonly appears in discussions of autoimmune phenomena, where the immune system attacks the body's own tissues, and in theoretical or experimental contexts describing therapies that target cancer cells by exploiting their own self-signaling pathways. In technology and information systems, selftargeted processes include software or systems that apply updates, security checks, or configuration changes to themselves, often via automated feedback loops. In social sciences and policy studies, the term can describe feedback-driven interventions aimed at the institution or population that implements them, rather than external targets.

Because selftargeted is not a formal technical standard across disciplines, its precise meaning is context-dependent. It is most helpful as a descriptive label for self-referential or self-directed targeting, signaling a distinction from externally targeted actions.

Related concepts include auto-targeting, self-regulation, and feedback control.