MH Managing Client Behaviors Flashcards
Altruism
Dealing with anxiety by reaching out to others
Ex. Nurse who loses family in fire becomes volunteer firefighter
*Always adaptive, unless used inappropriately or repetitively
Sublimation
Dealing with unacceptable feelings or impulses by unconsciously substituting acceptable forms of expression
Ex. Stress at work, work out to decrease stress
*Always adaptive, unless used inappropriately or repetitively
Suppression
Voluntarily denying unpleasant thoughts and feelings
Ex. (A) avoiding thinking of argument with friend to focus on test
(M) Lost job, I’ll worry about bills next week
*can be used adaptively, but typically used maladaptively
Repression
Unconsciously putting unacceptable thoughts emotions out of awareness
Ex. (A) someone prepping for speech and unconsciously remembers the time when he was young, and kids laughed at him on stage
(M) someone who fears the dentist and forgets to go to appointments
*can be used adaptively, but typically used maladaptively
Regression
the sudden use of childlike or primitive behaviors that don’t correlate with a person’s current developmental level
Ex. (A) a child that wets the bed when their pet passes away
(M) Disagreement with coworker leads to throwing objects
*can be used adaptively, but typically used maladaptively
Displacement
Shifting emotions to object, person, situation to another less threatening object, person or situation
Ex. (A) adolescent that punches punching bag after game
(M) angry about losing job, destroys favorite toy
*can be used adaptively, but typically used maladaptively
Reaction formation
Overcompensation or demonstrating the opposite behavior of what is felt
Ex. (A) smoker who is trying to quit, repeatedly tells kids dangers of nicotine
(M) hate your neighbor, but tell everyone how great they are
*can be used adaptively, but typically used maladaptively
Undoing
Performing an act to make up for previous behavior
Ex. (A) child does chores after argument with parents who being asked
(M) man who buys his wife flowers, gifts after abusing her
*can be used adaptively, but typically used maladaptively
Rationalization
Creating reasonable and acceptable explanations for unacceptable behavior
Ex. (A) when rejected by a girl, a boy thinks she must have a bf
(M) teen had to drive home drunk to feed their dog
*can be used adaptively, but typically used maladaptively
Dissociation
Creating a temporary compartmentalization of lack of connection between the person’s identity, memory, or how they perceive the environment
Ex. (A) mother ignores rowdy children to focus on driving
(M) a woman who forgets who she is after a sexual assault
Denial
Pretending the truth isn’t reality to manage the anxiety of acknowledging what is real
Ex. (A) “No, that can’t be true” in response to positive cancer result
(M) son killed in combat and tells fam that son is coming home for holidays
*can be used adaptively, but typically used maladaptively
Compensation
Emphasizing strengths to make up for weakness
Ex. (A) child unable to physically participate in sports, excels in academics
(M) a shy person works at computer skills to avoid socialization
*can be used adaptively, but typically used maladaptively
Identification
Conscious/unconscious assumption of the characteristics of another individual or group
Ex. (A) girl with chronic illness acts as a nurse for her dolls
(M) child view father abusing mom, becomes a bully at school
*can be used adaptively, but typically used maladaptively
Intellectualization
Separation of emotions and logical facts when analyzing or coping with a situation or event
Ex. (A) cop who can block emotion to focus on investigation
(M) terminally ill person focuses on creating will, finances instead of acknowledging grief
*can be used adaptively, but typically used maladaptively
Conversion
responding to stress through the unconscious development of physical manifestations not caused by a physical illness
Ex. (M) a person who experiences deafness after partner tells him she wants a divorce
*Only maladaptive
