Defense Mechanisms

Introduction

• Defense mechanisms are psychological strategies used to protect ourselves from unpleasant feelings, thoughts, and actions.
• They are unconscious reactions to protect the ego from pain and vulnerability.
• Originated by Freud and later developed by his daughter, Anna Freud.
• Understanding and applying real-life examples can enhance retrieval of information.

Key Concepts

• Defense Mechanisms: Unconscious methods for protecting oneself from unpleasant emotions or thoughts.
• Purpose: To shield the ego from harm, pain, and hurtful memories.

Common Defense Mechanisms

1. Compensation

• Making up for real or perceived weaknesses.
• Example: Excelling at work to compensate for marital problems.

2. Conversion

• Repression manifests in a bodily function.
• Example: Sickness due to stress about an upcoming test.

3. Denial

• Blocking external events from awareness.
• Example: Student caught cheating denies the act.

4. Dissociation

• Detachment from reality, often described as an out-of-body experience.
• Example: Not remembering the details of a traumatic event.

5. Displacement vs. Projection

• Displacement: Transferring emotions from the actual source to another target.
  • Example: Yelling at family after a bad day at work.
• Projection: Attributing one's own feelings to another.
  • Example: Accusing a partner of having a drinking problem to cover one's own.

6. Identification with Aggressor

• Adapting behaviors of the one causing harm.
• Example: A bullied child becomes aggressive towards others.

7. Introjection

• Adapting attitudes, beliefs, or values of others.
• Example: Teenager adopting fashion styles of popular peers.

8. Isolation of Affect

• Separating emotions from thoughts related to a traumatic event.
• Example: Not showing emotion after a traumatic car accident.

9. Rationalization

• Justifying actions with reasonable explanations.
• Example: Blaming external conditions for personal failings.

10. Reaction Formation

• Expressing the opposite of one's true feelings.
• Example: Displaying affection for someone you dislike.

11. Regression

• Reverting to earlier developmental stages in response to stress.
• Example: College student begins bedwetting during stressful exams.

12. Repression

• Unconscious forgetting of painful experiences.
• Example: Unable to recall a traumatic event.

13. Sublimation

• Redirecting negative emotions into positive activities.
• Example: Channeling anger into sports like boxing.

14. Undoing

• Attempting to reverse an unacceptable action.
• Example: Overcompensating with compliments after an insult.

Additional Resources

• Video resources and websites for further exploration of various defense mechanisms.

Practice Questions

• Scenarios to apply understanding of defense mechanisms.
• Examples include identifying projection, sublimation, and regression among others.
• Encouraged to eliminate incorrect options to identify the correct defense mechanism in applied questions.