ABSTRACT
This chapter explains the basics forms pre-reflective consciousness. It gives a brief overview of current attempts to define the notion of pre-reflective self-consciousness in terms of for-me-ness, and suggests that it is preferable to place the investigation of pre-reflective forms of self-awareness at the outset of development. The chapter highlights the crucial role of bodily self-awareness and bodily actions in constituting the pre-reflective foundations of self-awareness, and argues that implicit self-awareness in infancy is rooted in intermodal perception and action. It introduces the notion of bodily coupling in early social interactions, and reviews empirical studies supporting the idea that, before developing self-reflecting abilities, infants rely on basic sensorimotor, perceptual, and affective capacities which allow them to become interactively involved with and not only neutral onlookers of others' behavior. The chapter summons recent empirical work on the distinction between visual versus social perspective taking for arguing that self-apprehension through others' eyes is not the most primitive form of self-other relatedness.
