Chatter: The Voice in Our Head, Why It Matters, and How to Harness It

The introduction to Chatter begins with the author, Ethan Kross, a scientist who studies self-control, standing anxiously in his darkened living room with a baseball bat after receiving a threatening letter. This letter arrived following his brief television appearance discussing research about similarities between physical and emotional pain. Despite minimal help from police, Kross spent nights vigilantly watching his window, consumed by escalating anxiety.

Kross directs the Emotion and Self-Control Laboratory at the University of Michigan, where his research examines how internal dialogues influence behavior. His studies investigate self-talk methods, reasoning under stress, and the impact of social media on internal voice. His interest in self-reflection originated in childhood; his father consistently encouraged introspection as a problem-solving approach.

Introspection—actively paying attention to one’s thoughts and feelings—enables human capacities for imagination, memory, and problem-solving. However, contrary to his father’s belief that deliberate self-reflection leads to wisdom, recent research reveals that introspection during distress often causes significant harm to performance, decision-making, and relationships.

Kross introduces “chatter” as the cyclical negative thoughts that transform introspection from a beneficial tool into a harmful pattern. This phenomenon puts performance, relationships, and health at risk.