Egocentrism

An orange stick figure in the center of orange concentric circles, with six black stick figures scattered on the rim — A diagram of egocentrism

Egocentrism is the tendency to view situations primarily from one’s own perspective and to have difficulty understanding or considering the perspectives of others. Egocentrism is found across the life span: in infancy, early childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. Although egocentric behaviors are less prominent in adulthood, the existence of some forms of egocentrism in adulthood indicates that overcoming egocentrism may be a lifelong development that never achieves completion. Adults appear to be less egocentric than children because they are faster to correct from an initially egocentric perspective than children, not because they are less likely to initially adopt an egocentric perspective.