Defense Mechanisms

Chapter 4

Defense mechanisms:

n These are automatic and involuntary ways people react to anxiety-producing events or threats.

Ways to Use Them

n Many people use these to avoid the reality of a situation.

n They can be used in healthy and unhealthy ways throughout your life.

Many different types of defense mechanisms:

n Direct attack n Compensation n Rationalization n Projection n Displacement

n Conversion n Regression n Idealization n Day Dreaming n Giving Up

Direct Attack:

n This is used in response to a threat to your self-esteem, you attack the source of the threat.

n  You have defended the threat to your self-esteem

by attacking the person making the comment.

n This can be used in a healthy way if your comment back is not critical of the other person.

(Example on page 93-94)

Compensation:

n This uses a substitute method to achieve a desired goal.

n Compensation allows a person to

make up for some real or imaginary deficiency by doing well in something else.

For example,

Positively: n  If you are not tall or fast enough to play

basketball you might try other sports such as golf.

Negatively: n  If parents do not spend much time with their

children they often give their children many material things to compensate for the time they are not with them.

Rationalization:

n This is when you explain your weaknesses or failures by giving socially acceptable excuses.

n Rationalization may

make you feel better temporarily, but it does not help you solve the real problem.

For example:

If you failed a test and afterwards said it

was because it was impractical information and not worth knowing you were rationalizing.

If you did not study well enough, you

should admit it and try harder the next time.

Projection:

n  This is when you blame other people or things for your failures.

n  This does differ from rationalization in that you are actually projecting the blame to someone or something else.

n  Scapegoat is a common term used to describe the

person who bears the blame/projection. n  Ex: You may bump by someone while walking in the

hall. This person my use projection by saying “Why don’t you look where you are going.”

Displacement:

n This is when you transfer an emotion connected with one person or thing to an unrelated person or thing.

n You can displace hate, aggression, annoyance, or frustration.

n This is a unhealthy defense mechanism.

Ex: Students who are concerned about a certain social problem often displace their hatred and aggression.

Conversion:

n This is where you transfer the energy of a desire you cannot express into a physical symptom or complaint.

n Ex: If you have ever been uneasy about

getting up in front of the class to read a report, you may have lost your voice, or had clammy hands.

Regression:

n This is where you revert back to a less mature stage of development.

n Ex. Crying, name calling, throwing and breaking things, trying to escape the problem by using drugs or alcohol are all forms of regression.

Idealization:

n This is when you value something far more than it is worth.

n Ex: Idealizing yourself, other people, clothes, fancy cars, a huge house, etc.

Day Dreaming:

n People may day dream to accomplish in their imagination what they cannot accomplish in reality.

n Some day dreaming is healthy as long as it does not become frequent. You can attempt to escape reality instead of facing life as it comes. This could hinder your efforts to achieve real success.

Giving Up

n This is when a person feels they have no talents or skills. They feel the world is against them.

n These type of people need support and encouragement. These type of people must want to help themselves before anyone can actually help them. (Family members, friends, etc.)