consciousness – LIBERTY PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION

Psychopathological Hallucinations, an explanation:

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Psychopathological hallucinations could be perceptions that occur without an external stimulus and might be associated with mental or neurological disorders. The person experiences them as real sensory events even though nothing in the environment is producing them.

In clinical psychology and psychiatry, hallucinations could be considered a disturbance in perception rather than imagination or fantasy.

Key Characteristics

Psychopathological hallucinations typically might have several features:

No external stimulus
The perception occurs without a real sensory trigger.
Experienced as real
The person usually believes the perception is genuine.
Involuntary
They cannot be easily controlled or stopped.
Often linked to mental or neurological conditions

Types of Psychopathological Hallucinations

1. Auditory Hallucinations

The most common form.

Examples:

Hearing voices talking
Voices commenting on behavior
Voices giving commands

Possibly associated with

Schizophrenia
severe mood disorders

2. Visual Hallucinations

Seeing things that are not present.

Examples:

people
animals
lights or shapes

It could be associated with:

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Delirium
Parkinson’s Disease
neurological damage

3. Tactile Hallucinations

Feeling sensations on the body without cause.

Examples:

insects crawling on the skin
burning sensations

Could be linked to:

Substance Use Disorder
withdrawal states

4. Olfactory Hallucinations

Smelling odors that are not present.

Examples:

burning smells
rotting odors

Sometimes associated with:

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Temporal Lobe Epilepsy
brain tumors

5. Gustatory Hallucinations

Tasting something when nothing is in the mouth.

Examples:

metallic taste
poison-like taste

These are rare but may occur with neurological conditions.

Causes

Psychopathological hallucinations can arise from several mechanisms:

Psychiatric disorders

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Schizophrenia
Bipolar Disorder
Major Depressive Disorder (with psychotic features)

Neurological conditions

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Epilepsy
Parkinson’s Disease
brain injury

Substances

drugs (LSD, stimulants)
alcohol withdrawal

Extreme stress or sleep deprivation might cause it?

Psychopathology vs Other Hallucination Types

In Parapsychology and anomalous experiences, it’s important to note the distinction researchers often make.

Clinical psychology usually interprets hallucinations as symptoms of pathology.

However, parapsychology researchers studying bereavement visions or anomalous experiences sometimes debate whether all such experiences are pathological.

For example:

Parapsychology researchers may examine veridical perceptions in certain cases.
Clinical psychiatry generally explains them through psychopathology.
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In short:
Psychopathological hallucinations are sensory experiences without external stimuli caused by psychological or neurological disorders.

Shervan K Shahhian

Super-Psi Theory, explained:

The Super-Psi Theory is one of the main explanatory models used in parapsychology to account for extraordinary experiences, especially cases that appear to involve communication with the dead, spirits, or other non-physical entities.

Core Idea

The Super-Psi theory proposes that all paranormal phenomena originate from the living human mind, rather than from spirits, the afterlife, or external entities.

According to this model, a person’s unconscious psychic abilities could be far more powerful and wide-ranging than normally assumed, including abilities such as:

Telepathy: accessing the thoughts of other living people
Clairvoyance: obtaining information about distant events or objects
Precognition: acquiring knowledge about future events
Psychokinesis: influencing physical systems

“Super-Psi” means these abilities operate at an extraordinary level, combining many psi abilities simultaneously and unconsciously.

Why Parapsychologists Proposed It

Researchers introduced this theory to explain cases that look like spirit communication but might still be produced by the mind of a living person.

For example:

A person reports receiving information from a deceased relative that seems impossible to know.

Under Super-Psi, the explanation might be:

The person unconsciously obtained information via clairvoyance
They telepathically accessed memories of living relatives
Their mind combined this information into the appearance of a spirit message

So the experience feels like an external communicator, but the information actually originates from the living mind.

Where It Is Often Applied

Super-Psi is commonly discussed in research involving:

After-Death Communications
Mediumship
Apparitions
Poltergeist Phenomena

In each case, Super-Psi suggests that living human psi could produce the entire phenomenon.

Example

Imagine a medium gives accurate details about a deceased person.

Super-Psi explanation:

The medium telepathically reads the minds of the living relatives.
Clairvoyantly gathers additional information.
The unconscious mind organizes the data into the illusion of a communicating spirit.

Strengths of the Theory

Parapsychologists sometimes consider Super-Psi attractive because:

It does not require survival of consciousness after death
It keeps explanations within living human psychology
It is consistent with experimental evidence for psi abilities

Major Criticism

Many researchers argue the theory creates even bigger mysteries.

Critics say it requires almost unlimited psychic ability, such as:

Accessing any information anywhere
Knowing the future
Scanning multiple minds simultaneously

Because of this, some researchers believe Super-Psi becomes so powerful that it is almost unfalsifiable.

In Parapsychology:

The Three Main Models

Parapsychologists usually discuss three broad explanations for anomalous experiences:

Psychological/Psychiatric Model: hallucination, grief processes, cognitive factors
Super-Psi Theory: extraordinary psi of the living mind
Survival Hypothesis: consciousness survives death

Relevance to Your Interests

Parapsychology and anomalous experiences, Super-Psi is often debated in areas like:

bereavement visions
after-death communications
anomalous cognition
remote perception

It represents the most conservative paranormal explanation because it does not assume external entities.

Shervan K Shahhian

The Survival of Consciousness Hypothesis, explained:

The Survival of Consciousness Hypothesis is one of the central explanations in Parapsychology for phenomena suggesting that human consciousness may continue to exist after bodily death.

It proposes that the mind or consciousness is not completely dependent on the brain, and therefore may survive physical death in some form.

Core Idea

The hypothesis suggests:

Personal consciousness or identity continues after the death of the physical body.

In this view, the brain functions more like a receiver or interface rather than the sole producer of consciousness.

This idea contrasts with the standard view in Neuroscience (CONSULT WITH A NEUROLOGIST), which generally assumes that consciousness is entirely generated by brain activity and therefore ends when the brain dies.

Phenomena Often Used as Evidence

Researchers in Parapsychology study several types of experiences that may support survival:

1. After-Death Communications (ADCs)

Experiences in which people report contact with deceased individuals.

Examples include:

sensing a presence
hearing a voice
seeing apparitions
vivid dreams of the deceased

These experiences have been studied by Parapsychological researchers.

2. Mediumship

Some mediums claim to obtain information from deceased personalities.

Research organizations like the
Society for Psychical Research and the
Rhine Research Center have conducted controlled studies on this subject.

3. Near-Death Experiences (NDEs)

People revived after clinical death sometimes report:

leaving the body
seeing deceased relatives
entering a light or other realm

4. Reincarnation Cases

Cases where children claim memories of past lives.

A large body of cases was investigated by Parapsychologists.

Competing Explanation: The Super-Psi Model

Many modern researchers discuss a competing explanation called the Super-Psi hypothesis.

This model proposes that:

Living people unconsciously gather information through psi abilities such as telepathy or clairvoyance.
The information only appears to come from the dead.

So instead of survival after death, the source is the living mind.

The Three Main Interpretive Models

Parapsychologists often discuss three broad possibilities:

Psychological Model
Experiences arise from grief, memory, or hallucination.
Super-Psi (Living Agent Psi)
The living person’s mind gathers information paranormally.
Survival Hypothesis
Consciousness actually survives bodily death.

Why the Debate Continues

The survival hypothesis remains controversial because:

Evidence is suggestive but not universally replicable.
Many cases can have multiple interpretations.
Neuroscience still finds strong correlations between brain activity and consciousness.

So the question remains open scientifically.

Interesting note:
Some researchers argue that the most evidential cases are those where the information could not have been known by anyone present, which is where the debate between Survival vs. Super-Psi becomes most intense.

Shervan K Shahhian

Veridical Information, explained:

Veridical information refers to information that is demonstrably accurate and corresponds to real events or facts, especially when the person receiving it should not normally have access to it.

The term is widely used in parapsychology, psychology, and philosophy of mind when evaluating anomalous experiences.

1. Basic Definition

Veridical simply means truthful or corresponding to reality.

So veridical information is:

Information obtained during an experience that can later be objectively verified as correct.

2. Example in Parapsychology

In parapsychology, veridical information often appears in experiences like:

Near-death experiences (NDEs)
After-death communications (ADCs)
Mediumship
Remote viewing
Apparitions

Example:

A person reports seeing a deceased relative during a dream or vision, and the relative communicates:

a specific message
a hidden object
or an unknown family fact

Later, family members confirm the information is accurate but previously unknown to the experiencer.

If verified, researchers call this veridical information.

3. Example in Near-Death Research

In some reported NDEs, patients describe:

conversations in the operating room
objects placed in high locations
events happening outside the room

If hospital staff confirm these details, researchers call it veridical perception during NDE.

4. Importance in Parapsychology

Veridical information is important because it helps researchers distinguish between:

Experience Type	Explanation
Psychological hallucination	internally generated
Memory reconstruction	created after the fact
Super-psi hypothesis	psi functioning of the living mind
Survival of consciousness hypothesis	information from deceased consciousness

Veridical information is considered key evidence in debates about the survival of consciousness after death.

5. In Bereavement Experiences

In grief-related anomalous experiences, a person might receive veridical information such as:

location of lost objects
unknown family information
messages verified later

Researchers studying bereavement-related anomalous experiences sometimes treat such cases as potential evidence for anomalous information transfer.

6. Scientific Caution

Scientists remain cautious because veridical information could also arise from:

coincidence
subconscious inference
Cold Reading
Cryptomnesia
Confirmation Bias

So careful documentation and independent verification are essential.

In simple terms:

Veridical information: accurate information obtained through an unusual experience that later proves to be objectively true.

Shervan K Shahhian

Bereavement Visions in Parapsychology Research, explained:

Bereavement visions are one of the studied forms of after-death related anomalous experiences in parapsychology. Researchers examine them as possible perceptual experiences of the deceased occurring after death, usually reported by grieving individuals.

1. What Bereavement Visions Are

In parapsychology, bereavement visions are experiences in which a grieving person perceives the deceased as present. These perceptions can include:

Visual apparitions (seeing the deceased person)
Auditory experiences (hearing their voice)
Tactile sensations (feeling a touch or embrace)
Sense of presence
Dream encounters with vivid realism

These are often grouped under After‑Death Communications (ADCs).

Typical characteristics reported in research:

Occur spontaneously
Usually happen within the first year after death
Are often comforting rather than frightening
Individuals usually remain psychologically stable

2. Classic Parapsychology Research

One of the earliest major investigations came from the Society for Psychical Research (SPR).

Findings:

Thousands of reports of apparitions and crisis experiences were collected.
Some reports occurred close to the time of death of the person seen.
Researchers proposed the possibility of telepathic hallucinations.

3. Modern Bereavement Vision Research

Modern parapsychology approaches the phenomenon more systematically.

Many have Researched

Some of the research has documented thousands of cases.

Findings:

ADCs occur across cultures and religions
Most experiencers report psychological comfort
Many experiences involve clear sensory perception

4. Bereavement Vision Research in Psychology

Psychological researchers also studied these experiences without assuming a paranormal explanation.

A study was conducted that:

Some studied widows and widowers and found:

Some reported sensing or seeing the deceased spouse
Most participants did not consider themselves mentally ill

This suggested bereavement visions are relatively common in normal grief.

5. How Parapsychology Interprets Bereavement Visions

Parapsychologists generally consider four explanatory models.

1. Survival Model

The experience is interpreted as actual communication from the deceased.

2. Psi or Super-Psi Model

Related to the Super-Psi Theory:

The living person unconsciously gathers information via telepathy or clairvoyance
The mind constructs the experience.

3. Psychological Model

The experience arises from grief-related cognitive and emotional processes.

4. Hybrid Model

Some researchers think multiple mechanisms may operate simultaneously.

6. Typical Characteristics of Bereavement Visions

Parapsychological case collections consistently report:

Occur during quiet states or transitions (sleep/waking)
The apparition often appears healthy and peaceful
Messages are usually brief and reassuring
The experience ends abruptly

These features differentiate them from clinical hallucinations associated with psychiatric disorders.

7. Why Bereavement Visions Interest Parapsychologists

They are important because they potentially relate to the survival of consciousness hypothesis.

Researchers view them as valuable because they:

occur spontaneously
often involve ordinary individuals
can sometimes contain veridical information

In summary:
Bereavement visions are reported experiences in which the bereaved perceive the deceased. Parapsychology studies them as possible after-death communications, psi phenomena, or grief-related experiences, while psychology often interprets them as normal features of the grieving process.

Shervan K Shahhian

Tactile Hallucinations, explained:

Tactile hallucinations (also called haptic hallucinations) are false sensations of touch that occur without any external physical stimulus. A person genuinely feels something on or under their skin even though nothing is actually there.

In clinical psychology and psychiatry, tactile hallucinations might be classified as a type of somatic sensory hallucination.

Common Types of Tactile Hallucinations

People may report sensations such as:

• Bugs crawling on the skin (called formication)
• Something touching or tapping the body
• Burning or electric sensations
• Pressure or being grabbed
• Feeling something moving under the skin
• Water dripping or wind blowing on the skin

The experience can feel extremely real because the brain’s sensory cortex is producing the perception.

Conditions Associated With Tactile Hallucinations

In clinical contexts they may appear in several conditions:

1. Psychiatric Disorders

Common in:

Schizophrenia
Delusional Parasitosis
Severe Major Depressive Disorder with psychotic features

2. Substance Use or Withdrawal

Tactile hallucinations might occur during intoxication or withdrawal from substances such as:

Cocaine
Methamphetamine
Alcohol (especially during withdrawal or delirium tremens)

3. Neurological Conditions

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They might also occur in neurological disorders

Psychological vs Neurological Mechanism

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From a neuroscience perspective, CONSULT WITH A NEUROLOGIST, tactile hallucinations are thought to involve abnormal activation of the somatosensory cortex, the brain area responsible for touch perception.

Normally:

Stimulus: skin receptors: brain: touch perception, CONSULT WITH A NEUROLOGIST

In hallucinations:

Brain activity: perceived touch without stimulus, CONSULT WITH A NEUROLOGIST

Parapsychology Perspective

Some researchers have suggested other interpretations in certain anomalous experiences.

Some investigators discussed the possibility that certain tactile sensations in spontaneous cases might involve psychokinetic or psi-related processes, although this remains controversial and not widely accepted in mainstream science.

In the Super-Psi / Living Agent Psi model, unusual physical sensations might theoretically be produced unconsciously by psi processes rather than external spirits.

Key Point:
Tactile hallucinations are perceptions of touch without a physical cause, and they can arise from psychiatric, neurological, substance-related, or occasionally anomalous experiential contexts.

Shervan K Shahhian

Religious Hallucinations, explained:

Religious hallucinations could be sensory experiences involving religious or spiritual content that occur without an external stimulus. The person could believe they are hearing, seeing, or feeling a divine or supernatural presence.

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These experiences might occur in psychiatric disorders, extreme stress, bereavement, or sometimes in intense religious states. Because you study psychology and parapsychology, this topic is interesting since the two fields often interpret them very differently.

1. What Religious Hallucinations Look Like

They might involve religious figures, voices, or supernatural entities.

Common examples could include:

Auditory

Hearing the voice of God
Hearing angels or demons speaking
Commands believed to come from a divine source

Visual

Seeing Jesus, angels, saints, or demons
Visions of heaven, hell, or divine light

Tactile / Somatic

Feeling touched by a spiritual being
Sensation of possession or spiritual energy entering the body

Olfactory

Smelling incense, sulfur, or sacred fragrances without a source

2. Conditions Where They Commonly Occur

In clinical psychology, religious hallucinations might appear in several disorders:

Psychotic Disorders

Might commonly appear in

Schizophrenia
Schizoaffective Disorder

Some Typical features:

Commanding voices
Religious delusions (e.g., believing one is a prophet or chosen by God)

Mood Disorders with Psychosis

Such as:

Bipolar Disorder (during manic episodes)
Major Depressive Disorder with Psychotic Features

Example:

Hearing God condemning or judging them.

Neurological Conditions

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Temporal-lobe disturbances are especially associated with intense mystical or religious visions.

3. Cultural and Religious Context

Some psychologists might emphasize that culture strongly shapes hallucination content.

For example:

Christians may see Jesus or angels
Hindus may see deities

The brain might often use the person’s belief system to interpret unusual sensory experiences.

4. Difference Between Religious Experience and Hallucination

Some Psychologists might usually distinguish them by several criteria.

Healthy Religious Experience	Religious Hallucination
Occurs during prayer or meditation	Occurs spontaneously
Person retains critical thinking	Person believes it absolutely
Not distressing or commanding	Often commanding or frightening
Does not impair functioning	Often disrupts life

5. Parapsychological Interpretations

In parapsychology, some researchers might argue that not all such experiences are pathological.

Two interpretations sometimes maybe discussed:

Psi-mediated perception: (telepathy/clairvoyance)
Super-Psi / Living Agent Psi model: unconscious psychic abilities producing the experience.

This perspective could be discussed by researchers at the
Society for Psychical Research and the
Parapsychological Association.

However, mainstream science still treats most of these cases as psychological or neurological phenomena.

In summary:
Religious hallucinations are sensory experiences with spiritual content that occur without an external source. Clinically they are often linked to psychosis, neurological disorders, or extreme emotional states, while parapsychology sometimes explores non-ordinary interpretations.

Shervan K Shahhian

Bereavement-Related Anomalous Experiences, what are they:

Bereavement-Related Anomalous Experiences (BRAEs) could be unusual perceptual or psychological experiences reported by people after the death of a loved one. They could be widely discussed in both clinical bereavement research and Parapsychology. These experiences might often feel very real and meaningful to the bereaved person.

What They Are

Bereavement-related anomalous experiences could be subjective experiences in which a grieving person perceives contact, presence, or communication from the deceased.

They typically occur during the early stages of grief but may also appear years later.

Some researchers in grief psychology might sometimes call them After-Death Communications (ADCs).

Common Types of Bereavement Experiences

1. Sense of Presence

A person feels the deceased nearby even though no one is physically there.

Examples:

Feeling the loved one sitting beside them
Sensing someone in the room
Feeling watched over

2. Visual Experiences

Seeing the deceased briefly or in dreams.

Examples:

Seeing the loved one standing in the room
A vivid waking vision
Extremely realistic dreams of the deceased

These are sometimes called grief visions.

3. Auditory Experiences

Hearing the voice of the deceased.

Examples:

Hearing their name called
Hearing them speak a brief message

4. Tactile Experiences

Physical sensations associated with the deceased.

Examples:

Feeling a touch on the shoulder
Feeling someone sit on the bed

5. Symbolic Coincidences

Events interpreted as meaningful signs.

Examples:

Unusual animal appearances
Objects moving or appearing unexpectedly
Music associated with the deceased playing suddenly

6. Dream Encounters

Dreams where the deceased appears alive, healthy, and communicating.

Some people might report these dreams as emotionally healing rather than disturbing.

How Common Are They?

Surprisingly, they could be very common.

Studies in bereavement research might suggest:

Some of widows and widowers report at least one experience
Many people might never report them because they fear being judged

Possible Psychological Interpretation

Possibly in clinical psychology, these experiences could often explained as:

Normal grief phenomena
Memory activation and emotional processing
Attachment system responses
Temporary sensory misperceptions during intense mourning

Importantly, they may not usually be considered symptoms of mental illness unless they are persistent, distressing, or impair functioning.

Possible Interpretation in Parapsychology

Some researchers in Parapsychology might sometimes explore other possibilities:

Survival hypothesis: consciousness continues after death
Super-Psi Hypothesis: the bereaved mind unconsciously produces psi information
Psychological coping mechanisms

Some parapsychologists acknowledge that multiple explanations may coexist.

Possible, Key Characteristics

Bereavement anomalous experiences might have these traits:

Brief and spontaneous
Occur during emotional vulnerability
Feel comforting rather than frightening
Do not typically impair reality testing

Example Report

A typical report might be:

“After my husband died, I woke up one night and felt him sit on the bed and place his hand on my shoulder. I wasn’t scared, it felt comforting.”

Experiences like this might be reported cross-culturally and throughout history.

Possibly Important Clinical Perspective

Some modern grief specialists might view these experiences as:

Common
Usually healthy
Often helpful in the grieving process

Unless they become persistent hallucinations with loss of insight, they are not treated as psychiatric disorders.

Shervan K Shahhian

The Fourth Model Many Modern Parapsychologists Discuss the “Super-Psi or Living Agent Psi model”:

Many modern researchers in Parapsychology may discuss a fourth explanatory model for anomalous experiences that could be called the “Super-Psi” or “Living Agent Psi (LAP)” model. This model tries to explain phenomena that appear paranormal or spirit-related without requiring discarnate spirits or external entities.

The Super-Psi / Living Agent Psi Model

Basic idea:
All the information or effects involved in an anomalous experience come from the psychic abilities of living people, usually unconsciously.

These abilities may include:

Telepathy: mind-to-mind information transfer
Clairvoyance: acquiring information about distant or hidden events
Precognition: knowledge of future events
Psychokinesis: mental influence on physical systems

The “super” part of the theory means these abilities operate at extremely complex and powerful levels, combining all of the above simultaneously.

Why It Was Proposed

Some researchers may have noticed that some paranormal cases seemed to involve:

Accurate information about deceased people
Objects moving or disturbances (poltergeist cases)
Visions or voices that seem external
Mediumistic information

Instead of assuming spirits, the Super-Psi model suggests:

The living person’s unconscious psi gathers information from anywhere in space and time and constructs the experience.

Example

A grief apparition:
Someone sees and hears a deceased relative.

Interpretations by different models:

Psychological model: grief hallucination
Survival model: the spirit of the deceased actually appeared
Psi model: telepathic/clairvoyant perception
Super-Psi model: the experiencer’s unconscious psi accessed information about the deceased and created the full perception

Where It Is Used

The model is often discussed in research areas such as:

Apparitions
Mediumship
Poltergeist cases
Near-death and after-death communication reports

Some influential parapsychologists who possibly debated these ideas include:

J. B. Rhine
Ian Stevenson
Stephen E. Braude

Strengths of the Model

Parapsychologists might consider it attractive because it:

Explains paranormal information without requiring spirits
Uses known psi processes studied in labs
Can theoretically explain very complex cases

Main Criticism

Critics may argue the model becomes too powerful and unfalsifiable.

For example:

If unconscious psi can access any mind, any place, any time, then almost any paranormal event might be explained by Super-Psi, making it difficult to test scientifically.

Important Debate in Parapsychology

Today the biggest debate in Parapsychology could be between:

Super-Psi / Living Agent Psi theory
Survival of consciousness after death

Both might attempt to explain the same phenomena but propose very different realities.

Shervan K Shahhian

Theory of Mind, what is it:

Theory of Mind (ToM) is the ability to understand that other people have their own thoughts, beliefs, feelings, intentions, and perspectives, which may be different from your own.

Simple Definition

It is the mental capacity to “read minds” indirectly, not literally, but by inferring what someone else might be thinking or feeling.

Key Idea

People with Theory of Mind recognize that:

Others can believe things that are false
Others have different knowledge
Others have intentions and emotions separate from theirs

Example

Imagine a husband sees that a cookie jar was moved.

Husband with Theory of Mind:
“Wife doesn’t know the jar moved, so she will look in the old place.”
Without Theory of Mind:
“Wife will look where the jar actually is because I know where it is.”

Importance

Theory of Mind is crucial for:

Empathy
Social interaction
Communication
Moral reasoning
Deception and sarcasm understanding

For example, understanding sarcasm requires recognizing that someone’s literal words differ from their actual intention.

Clinical Relevance

Difficulties with Theory of Mind are often seen in:

Autism Spectrum Disorder (CONSULT WITH A NEUROLOGIST)
Schizophrenia
Borderline Personality Disorder

These conditions may affect how a person interprets others’ intentions or emotions.

In Psychology Research

Theory of Mind could be studied in fields such as:

Developmental Psychology
Social Psychology
Cognitive Neuroscience

In short:
Theory of Mind: the ability to understand that other minds exist and think differently than yours.

Shervan K Shahhian