Table 15.2 Adaptive and Maladaptive Uses of Defense Mechanisms Flashcards
altruism
largely unconsious motivation to feel caring and concern for others and act for the well being of others
a woman anonymously donates to her colleagues go fund me campaign
altruism
adaptive
a neighbor compulsively rescues cats and kittens to the detriment of the animals and his own health and safety
altruism
maladaptive
compensation
counterbalance perciveved deficiencies by empathizing strengths
a shorter than average man becomes assertively verbal and excels in buisness
compensation
adaptive
a woman drinks alcohol when feeling a low self esteem to temporarily ease her discomfort
compensation
maladaptive
conversion
unconsious transformation of anxiety into a physical symptom with no organic cause
a man becomes blind after seeing his wife enter a hotel room with another man
coversion
maladaptive
denial
escaping unpleasant, anxiety causing thoughts, feelings, wishes, or needs by ignoring their existence
a man reacts to the death of a loved one by saying “no I don’t believe you” to initially protect himself from the overwhelming news
denial
adaptive
a woman whose husband died 3 years earlier still keels his clothes in the closet and talks about him in the present tense
denial
maladaptive
displacement
transference of emotions associated with a particular person, objet, or situation to another nonthreatening person, object, or situation
a child yells at his teddy bear after being picked on by the school bully
displacement
adaptive
a child who is unable to acknowledge fear of his father becomes fearful of animals
displacement
maladaptive
dissociation
disruption in consciousness, memory, identity, or perception of the environment that results in compartmentalizing uncomftorable or unpleasant aspects of oneself
an art student is able to mentally separate herself from a noisy enviorment as she becomes absorbed in her work
dissociation
adaptive
as the result of an abusive childhood and the need to separate from its realities, a woman finds herself perpetually disconnected from reality
dissociation
maladaptive
identification
attributing to oneself the characteristic of another person or group. This may be done consciously or unconsciously
an 8 year old girl dresses up like her teacher and puts together a pretend classroom for her friends
identification
adaptive
a boy dresses and talks like the neighborhood drug dealer and starts his own gang
identification
maladaptive
intellectualization
process in which events are analyzed based on remote, cold facts and without passion, rather than incorporating feeling and emotion into the processing
despite having lost his farm to a tornado, a man analyzes his options and leads his child to safety
intellectualization
adaptive
a man responds to the death of his wife by focusing on the details of day care and operating the household rather than processing the grief with his children
intellectualization
maladaptive
projection
unconsious rejection of emotionally unacceptable features and attributing them to others
a woman who has repressed an attraction toward other women refuses to socialize. she fears that another woman will come onto herq
projection
maladaptive
rationalization
consist of justifying illogical or unreasonable ideas, actions, or feelings by developing acceptable explanations that satisfy the teller and the listener
an employee says “I didn’t get the raise because the boss dosent like me”
rationalization
adaptive
a man who believes that his son was fathered by another man excuses his harsh treatment of the boy by saying “he is lazy and doesn’t listen to me” when that is not true
rationalization
maladaptive
reaction formation
when unacceptable feelings or behaviors are controlled and kept out of awareness by developing the opposite emotion or behavior
a recovering alcoholic constantly talks about the evils of drinking
reaction formation
adaptive
a woman who has an unconsious hostility toward her daughter is overprotective and hovers over her to protect her from harm, interfering with her normal growth and development
reaction formation
maladaptive
regression
reverting to an ealier, more primitive and childlike pattern of behavior that may or may not have been exhibited previously
a 4 year old boy with a new baby brother temporality starts sucking his thumb and asking for a bottle
regression
adaptive
a man who loses a promotion starts complaining to others, hands in sloppy work, misses appointments and comes in late for meetings
regression
maladaptive
repression
unconscious exclusion of unpleasant or unwanted experiences, emotions, or ideas from conscious awarness
after a marital fight a man forgets his spouses birthday
repression
adaptive
a woman is unable to enjoy sex after having pushed out of awareness a traumatic sexual incident from childhood
repression
maladaptive
splitting
inability to integrate the positive and negative qualities of oneself or others into a cohesive image
a 26 year old woman initially values her acquaintances yet invariably becomes disillusioned when they turn out to have flaws
splitting
maladaptive
sublimation
unconsious process of transforming negative impulses into less damaging and even productive impulses
a woman who is angry with her boss channels her feelings into housework until her house is sparkling clean
sublimination
adaptive
supression
conscious decision to delay addressing a disturbing situation or feeling. For example, Jessica has studied for the state board exam for a week. She says “ I won’t worry about paying my rent until after my exam tomorrow
a businessman who is preparing to make an important speech is told by his wife that morning that she wants a divorce. although visibly upset he puts the incident aside until after his speech when he can give the matter his total attention
suppression
adaptive
a woman who feels a lump in her Brest shortly before leaving for a 3 week vacation puts the information in the back of her mind until after she returns from her vacation
supression
maladaptive
undoing
person makes up for a regrettable act or communication
after flirting with her male secretary, a woman brings her husband tickets to a concert he wants to see
undoing
adaptive
a man with rigid, moralistic beliefs and repressed sexuality is driven to wash his hands to gain composure when he is around attractive women
undoing
maladaptive
