Defense Mechanisms Flashcards
Altruism
Deal with anxiety by reaching out to others
Sublimation
Deal with unacceptable feelings/impulses by substituting ut to acceptable forms of expression
Suppression
Bad- person loses job and says they worry about paying bills next week
Voluntary denying of unpleasant thoughts and feelings
Repression
Unknowingly putting bad ideas, thoughts, and emotions out of awareness
BAD- scared of dentist puts off dental appts
Regression
Sudden use of childlike or primitive behaviors that do not match with current developmental stage
Displacement
Shift feelings related to an object, person or situation to another less threatening object, person or situation
Reaction Formation
Unacceptable feelings or behaviors are controlled or kept out of awareness by overcompensating or demonstrating
Bad- a person who hates taking care of old people but is overprotective and restricts the persons freedoms
Undoing
Performing an act to make up for before behavior
BAD- abuser buys person flowers to make up for what they did
Rationalization
Creating reasonable and acceptable explanations for unacceptable behaviors.
Bad- person explains they had to drive home drunk to feed their dog
Denial
Pretending the truth is not reality to manage unpleasant thoughts or feels
Intellectualization
Separation of emotions and logical facts when analyzing or coping with an event
Bad- pt learns they have terminal illness and starts to make will instead of grieve
Splitting
Demonstrating an inability to reconcile negative and positive attributes of self or others into a cohesive image
Bad- pt tells nurse they are the only ones to listen to them but the next day they ignore nurse
Projection
Attributing one’s unacceptable thoughts and feelings to another person who does not have them
Bad- pt is attracted to someone else and blames partner of cheating
Introjection
Person copies someone/thing unknowingly
Somatization
Pysch issues become physical
Headache during exam
