Journal article 220 views 6 downloads
Pretending to be myself: on camouflaging and selfhood in the experience of anxiety
Philosophical Psychology, Pages: 1 - 23
Swansea University Author:
Anna Bortolan
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© 2026 The Author(s). This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License.
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DOI (Published version): 10.1080/09515089.2025.2596269
Abstract
Drawing on the notion of “camouflaging” and its characterization within research on autism, this paper explores the role that attempts to conceal one’s experiences may have in the phenomenology of anxiety. I start by suggesting that actions associated with both the “masking” and “compensating” dimen...
| Published in: | Philosophical Psychology |
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| ISSN: | 0951-5089 1465-394X |
| Published: |
Informa UK Limited
2026
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| Online Access: |
Check full text
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| URI: | https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa71026 |
| Abstract: |
Drawing on the notion of “camouflaging” and its characterization within research on autism, this paper explores the role that attempts to conceal one’s experiences may have in the phenomenology of anxiety. I start by suggesting that actions associated with both the “masking” and “compensating” dimension of camouflaging may be present in different forms of anxiety. I then proceed to argue that these actions may foster the person’s ability to sustain their identity when some of its core aspects are seen as being threatened by anxious feelings, thoughts, and behaviors. I do so by drawing on an account of selfhood to which both affective and narrative processes are central, suggesting that, in some cases, actions associated with camouflaging can facilitate the experience of affects and the upholding of narratives that are self-constitutive. |
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| Keywords: |
Camouflaging; anxiety; self; affective; narrative |
| College: |
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Start Page: |
1 |
| End Page: |
23 |