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Defense Mechanisms

Defense Mechanisms. What is a defense mechanism? An unconscious way for us to deal with anxiety caused by an inner conflict Defense Mechanisms the ego’s protective methods of reducing anxiety by unconsciously distorting reality Repression

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Defense Mechanisms

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  1. Defense Mechanisms • What is a defense mechanism? • An unconscious way for us to deal with anxiety caused by an inner conflict • Defense Mechanisms • the ego’s protective methods of reducing anxiety by unconsciously distorting reality • Repression • the basic defense mechanism that banishes anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings, and memories from consciousness • This is why we do not remember our sexual feelings for our parent. This enables other defense mechanisms. • It does come out in dream symbols or slips of the tongue.

  2. Defense Mechanisms • Regression • defense mechanism in which an individual faced with anxiety retreats to a more infantile psychosexual stage, where some psychic energy remains fixated • A new kindergartner may be nervous and start to suck her thumb. • College students may wish for the comforts of home.

  3. Defense Mechanisms • Reaction Formation • defense mechanism by which the ego unconsciously switches unacceptable impulses into their opposites • people may express feelings that are the opposite of their anxiety-arousing unconscious feelings • In situations where you are timid, you may act daring • Defends our self-esteem. Protects our self-image

  4. Defense Mechanisms • Projection • defense mechanism by which people disguise their own threatening impulses by attributing them to others • “He doesn’t trust me” means “I don’t trust him” • Today called the “false consensus effect”. We overestimate the extent to which people agree with us. • Rationalization • defense mechanism that offers self-justifying explanations in place of the real, more threatening, unconscious reasons for one’s actions. • People who choose to be drink may say they do it “just to be social”

  5. Defense Mechanisms • Displacement • defense mechanism that shifts sexual or aggressive impulses toward a more acceptable or less threatening object or person • as when redirecting anger toward a safer outlet • When a kid is angry at a parent, he may kick the family pet

  6. Sublimation- transformation of unacceptable impulses to socially valued motivations. • example- da Vinci’s paintings of Madonna are a sublimation of his longing for an intimate relationship with his mother who left him at an early age.

  7. Its important to understand that we use defense mechanisms to protect ourselves form anxiety. • Our body protects itself from disease without our knowing. • Terror-management theory- thinking about our own mortality promotes self-esteem. We cling to relationships. Trapped 911 victims called their family members before everyone else. • Complete defense mechanism worksheet

  8. Freud believed that we are anxious about our unacceptable wishes and impulses, and we repress this anxiety with the help of the strategies below. Defending Against Anxiety

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