Psychological Defences Flashcards
What are the types of psychological defences and what is their purpose?
Psychotic, neurotic and mature defences
Psychotic - denial of reality e.g. denial, conversion, splitting
Neurotic - temporary relief but ultimate disability e.g. dissociation, repression, undoing (magical)
Mature - adequate transformation of stressful ego e.g. altruism, sublimation
What is derealisation as a psychological defence? In what conditions might this occur?
the subjective sense that the world and others appear to be fake and unreal
in anxiety, in functional psychosis (BPD), also organic states (epilepsy)
IMMATURE
What is regression as a psychological defence?
Uncovering of usually hidden component of the patient’s personality during treatment
IMMATURE
What is repression as a psychological defence?
a patient’s reduced ability to access some issues or emotions
IMMATURE
Transference resistance is?
when a patient unconsciously wishes to mirror past relationships within the therapeutic relationship
IMMATURE
What is conversion as a psychological defence?
unconscious conflict that would otherwise arouse anxiety is expressed symbolically. the repressed emotion is transformed into a physical symptoms
IMMATURE - PATHOLOGICAL
What is undoing as a psychological defence?
defence mechanism whereby an emotional conflict associated with an action is dealt with by negative the actions or attempting to ‘magically’ cause it to not have occur by substituting it will an approximately opposed action
common in OCD with compulsions to avoid anxiety
IMMATURE
What is isolation as a psychological defence?
involving the act or process of separating or placing apart emotions or feelings (e.g. isolation of affect)
IMMATURE
What is ambivalence as a psychological defence?
an apparent inability to make decisions, or the development of conflicting attitudes towards others and one’s self
IMMATURE
What is PERSECUTATORY SPIRAL as a psychological defence?
usually occuring due to misinterpretation or the therapist being mean or authoritarian
escalating, destructive interaction in which both patient and therapist feel persecuted
IMMATURE
What is ‘anger turned inwards’ as a psychological defence?
IMMATURE, said by Freud
When anger is repressed and turned inward, it can become a psychological defence mechanism that can lead to depression. This can happen when someone fears being rejected or abandoned if they express their anger directly
IMMATURE
What is projective identification as a psychological defence?
individuals unwanted/uncomfortable feelings are projected onto the therapist - the therapist then identified with these feelings
- erotic countertransference is an example
IMMATURE
What is projection as a psychological defence?
IMMATURE
One owns negative feelings are attributed to another person
What is acting out as a psychological defence?
instead of remembering difficult past experiences, a person will enact them e.g. anger, SH, rejection
IMMATURE
What is splitting as a psychological defence?
typically, in people with BPD - they divide parts of themselves into good and bad (good breast, bad breast) and project this onto others
IMMATURE
What is idealisation and denigration as a psychological defence?
attempts to avoid ambivalence about themselves or other people - black and white, good and bad
IMMATURE
What is dissociation as a psychological defence?
removes self from reality in order to not be in contact with painful feelings or thoughts, emotional and cognitive aspects splitting
IMMATURE
What is reaction formation as a psychological defence?
adopting beliefs, attitudes and feelings contrary to what you really believe
e.g. have internally negative impression of gay people, who might take on opposite effect of being empathetic towards them
IMMATURE
What is ‘IDENTIFICATION WITH THE ABUSER as a psychological defence?
A person may take on abusive aspects of their own abuser e.g. childhood bullying
IMMATURE
What is displacement as a psychological defence?
channelling a feeling or thought from its actual source to something or someone more acceptable e.g angry with boss, this displaces to partner
IMMATURE
What is the difference between the psychological defences of projection and displacement?
With projection, you are conscious that the fault lies with you, although you shift this/project, to avoid blame
e.g. struggling at new IT job, and when sturggling with working the computer, you call it stupid (you feel stupid inside)
- projection helps us to get true desires into hte open in one form or another, releasing some of the energy required to repress them. Just as important though, the desire emerges in such a way that the ego and superego DO NOT recognise it as belonging to you.
With displacement, the fault lies outside of you, but is still shifted by you to displace the blame
What is rationalisation as a psychological defence?
justifying thoughts, feelings and actions using logically plausible explanations, even if unrelated
What is sublimation as a psychological defence?
redirecting unacceptable instinctual drives into personally and socially acceptable channels
e.g. someone with violent tendencies does kickboxing
MATURE
What is altruism as a psychological defence?
selflessly acting for others and thereby avoiding the difficulty of attending to ones own needs
MATURE
