This paper aims at elaborating the concept of linguistic self with regard to its twofold existence modes, namely as a physical person and as a mental subject, being shaped by external and internal dialogs in interpersonal and intersubjective communication. These dialogical encounters, constantly changing the reality of everyday life, are based, on the one hand, on the observable multitextuality of narratives, and on the other, on the multi-voicedness of opinions. As such, it lays emphasis on the need for a holistic approach to human beings as a psychosomatic unity, taking part in cognition with their minds and bodies, and developing itself both in-and-with the physical and logical domains of their surrounding ecosystems. In view of the private and public character of the self, the author postulates to consider in future studies the achievements of personal and social constructivism.

The aim of the article is twofold: to introduce a Polish adaptation of the Self-Talk Scale (STS) by Brinthaupt et al. (2009), including psychometric properties of the method, and to present some empirical results focusing on relationships between inner speech and other variables, like temperamental and personality traits, selected features of characteristic adaptations, and the self. In a Polish sample of 1,321 participants (770 women) aged 18–70 years ( M = 26.62, SD = 8.30), the internal structure of the scale consisting of self-criticism, self-reinforcement, self- management, and social assessment was confirmed with confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), which showed an acceptable fit of the four-function model to the empirical data. However, according to EFA, two functions, self- management and social assessment, constituted one common factor. Internal consistency of the total score was high, α = .87 and .88, in two samples, as well as for particular functions, from .73 to .85. Validity of the STS was confirmed with the Internal Dialogical Activity Scale – Revised (Oleś et al., 2020). Moreover, STS results corresponded with traits like endurance and neuroticism; characteristic adaptation, like love for life; characteristics of the self, like reflection and rumination; and slightly with tolerance for ambiguity.