ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an exposition of dialogical self theory (DST), with a focus on its basic concepts, historical origin, and moral implications. The basic assumption of this theory is that the self functions as a ‘society of mind.’ In analogy to dialogues between participants who occupy positions in the society at large, dialogical relationships can also be developed between I-positions in the mini-society of the self. The chapter investigates the moral significance of I-positions and the moral potentials of dialogical relationships both between participants of the macro-society and between I-positions in the micro-society of the self. Finally, a distinction is made between different levels of inclusiveness in the self: I-positions may function at an individual level (I as an individual person), at a group level (I as a group member), and a human level (I as a human being). Arguments are presented for the thesis that for a moral society and a moral self, the human level is essential in a globalizing and boundary-crossing world.
