Defense Mechanisms (aka Adaptive Mechanisms) are specific, unconscious intrapsychic adjustment efforts which are utilized to resolve emotional conflict and free the individual from anxiety. They deny, falsify or distort reality. They operate unconsciously so that the person is not aware of what is taking place.
Common Mental Defense Mechanisms
1.
FANTASY
Fantasies or daydreams are temporary escapes from the frustration of reality. In fantasies and daydreams the individual's thwarted desires can be very easily satisfied. Adolescents are particularly prone to daydreams and fantasies. The girls usually dream of beauty, glamour and love. Boys frequently dream of physical strength, courage and adventures.
2.
NOMADISM
Nomadism is a continual wandering from place to place. The moving from place to place usually brings no tangible gain. It is an attempt to get away from a frustrating situation. In everyday life, this may take the form of frequent change of residence, frequent changes of job or even changes of marital partners.
3.
REGRESSION
Regression means going back. A frustrated individual may seek unconsciously to return to an earlier, more secure period of life. He glens from the painful realities and responsibilities of the present to the protected existence of his childhood. A person who is regressing may start to act in a childish way, may pout or frown or have temper tantrums when he does not get what he want.
4.
REPRESSION
Repression is the process of excluding from conscious awareness of undesirable thought, feeling or memory that causes pain, shame or guilt. Repression serves to protect the self from pain of certain thoughts and memories. For instance, unpleasant incidents and thoughts could easily be forgotten through the process of repression.
5.
REACTION FORMATION
A person may unconsciously repress his social unacceptable desires and develop a conscious attitudes and overt behavior patterns which are the opposite of his real, unconscious wishes. At times, the conscious attitude which develop are highly exaggerated, extreme and intolerant.
6.
DISPLACEMENT
By this defense mechanism, a feeling is transferred from its actual object to a substitute. A feeling generally directed toward a certain person, object or situation which is transferred to another person, object or situation which becomes invested with the emotional significance originally associated with the former. For instance aggression may be displaced in three (3) ways.
a.
SCAPEGOATING - This means blaming another person for one's failure or mistake, or expressing anger against a person or object which is not the original source of frustration. For example, if a man get angry with his in the office, he may "take it out" on his wife by criticizing her cooking when he gets home. Or if a student fails in his subject, he may express his anger towards his companion at home.
b.
FREE-FLOATING ANGER - This is a chronic reaction pattern in which hostility becomes generalized so that even neutral situations are reacted to with hostility. For example, a person with prolonged anger which he cannot express towards the person concerned may go around boiling with rage.
c.
SUICIDE - This is hostility to one's self. When an aggression cannot be directed towards the frustrating person because society does not approve the expression of such feelings, the individual's feeling of hostility may be replaced feelings guilt and accusations which may eventually lead to attempted suicide. For example, a person who has been frustrated on love may be unable to hurt the one who has frustrated him and may turn his anger towards himself and attempt to hurt himself.
7.
PROJECTION
This is a defense mechanism in which the individual unconsciously convince himself that others have the undesirable thoughts and motives that he actually has himself. A person finds his thoughts and feelings and then attribute those thoughts and feeling to others around him. For example, if a person harbor feelings of hate towards a person he is supposed to love, he may be unable to admit these emotions to himself. So he may convince himself that it is the other person who hates him.
8.
SUBLIMATION.
It is indirect expression of a need which cannot be satisfied directly, through acceptance of an alternate goal which provides a socially acceptable outlet of expression of the sexual urge. For example, the sexual drive could be sublimated through competitive sports.
9.
SUBSTITUTION
It is the expression of frustrated impulses indirectly with no change in the conscious quality of desires. It often involves socially unacceptable and guilt feelings. For example, frustrated sexual impulses may be substituted by masturbation or undesirable language behavior, such as telling obscene stories, writing obscene poetry and singing dirty songs.
10.
COMPENSATION
It is an attempt to disguise the presence of a weak or undesirable trait by emphasizing a desirable one. Compensation involves behavior that is socially desirable and acceptable. For example, a person who is physically unattractive may attempt to gain popularity by developing charming manner and learning to be an interesting conversationalist.
11.
OVERCOMPENSATION
This is an extreme socially unacceptable attempt to counterbalance actual or imagined inferiority. For example, an unattractive person may try desperately to gain recognition by asserting himself in ways that irritate people around him, such as by talking too loudly or by showing off.
12.
RATIONALIZATION
This is a defense mechanism by which seemingly logical explanations are devised to explain and justify behavior which might result in loss of social approval and self esteem. Rationalization may take many forms, among which are:
a.
SOUR GRAPE MECHANISM (SOUR GRAPING) - This is illustrated by old fable about the fox who tried without success to reach a bunch of grapes hanging over his head. When he did not get them he told himself that they were too sour anyway.
b.
SWEET LEMON ATTITUDE - This is illustrated by a philosophy which says "Not in doing what you like but in liking what you do is the secret of happiness". For example, a person who is not satisfied with his job may pretend that he is enjoying it when actually he is not.
13.
ISOLATION
This defense mechanism consists of avoidance of conflict between two opposed desires or attitudes by keeping them part in "logic tight compartments" in consciousness. Certain ideas are sealed of in mental compartments and allowed to function isolation from conflicting ones. The individual can maintain contrary ideas and attitudes without acknowledging their logical incompatibility. People with logic tight compartments think and act inconsistently.
14.
UNDOING
In this mechanism, the individual divest himself of painful feelings by making use of cleansing ritual after doing something which causes him to feel guilty. For example, a person who has done something he feels guilty about may wash his hands to cleanse away his guilt.
15.
DISSOCIATION
A psychological separation or splitting off and intrapsychic defense process which operated automatically and unconsciously. Through its operation, emotional significance and affect are separated and detached from an idea, situation or object. Dissociation may unconsciously defer to or postpone experiencing the emotional impact, as for example in selective amnesia.
In dissociation, certain aspects or activities of the personality escape from the control of the individual; become separated from normal consciousness and function as a segregated unitary whole. Dissociation is the separation of the mind or consciousness by splitting off on one (sometimes more) component or system of ideas, the personality of remainder of the mind being unable to exert any control over the split-off portion. This phenomenon of dissociation may be witnessed in the automatic of hysteria, somnambulism, in double personality and in the main delusions of patients.
16.
FIXATION
The arrest of psychosexual development. Development may be halted at an incomplete stage with persistence of certain incompletely matured elements. Such personality will show lack of harmonious integration; emotional organization remains at an immature level.
17.
RESISTANCE
Opposition to bringing or repressed data into awareness. This helps the person avoid memories and insights. It is manifested during psychotherapy as blocking embarrassment, silence and anxieties.
18.
RESTITUTION
Mechanism of relieving the mind of a lead of guilt by substantive acts (making up for or separation). It may become the main motive of life.
19.
DENIAL
A defense mechanism operating unconsciously, use to resolve emotional conflict and anxiety by denying a thought, feeling, wish, need or external reality factor which is consciously intolerable.
20.
SYMBOLIZATION
An unconscious mental process whereby one object or idea comes to stand for another through some part, quality or aspect which the two have in common. It operates by association and is based on similarity and abstract representation.
21.
CONVERSION
A mental mechanism operating unconsciously, by which intrapsychic conflict which would otherwise give rise to convert into a variety of somatic symptoms.
22.
CONDENSATION
A psychological process often present in dreams which two or more concepts are fused so that a single symbol represents the multiple components.
23.
IDENTIFICATION
Mechanism by which the child takes over the attitudes and behavior patterns of his parents and other significant to him. The child admires or aspires to the strength and qualities of his elders and other associates and acquiring their modes of behaviors. Identification may also take the following forms:
a.
INCORPORATION - Refers to the taking in or early qualities through the infantile nursing experiences with the mother and is considered to begin during the oral stage of development.
b.
INTROJECTION - A process by which personality incorporates the norms and standards of its culture through the identifications with parents or other admired persons in society.
c.
HOSTILE IDENTIFICATION - Taking on of socially undesirable characteristics of a parent if these appear to provide some special strength or merit.
d.
IDENTIFICATION WITH THE AGGRESSOR - Means by which the frustrated individual incorporates into his own personality by means of imitating or acquiring characteristics the characteristics of a person whom one fears.
e.
TRANSFERENCE - The image of one person is unconsciously identified with that of another.
f.
EMPATHY - A healthy form of identification which is limited and temporary but which enables one person to feel for and with another and to understand his experiences and feeling is known as empathy. By means of this quality, the individual possesses a warm capacity for projecting himself into the situations and feelings of the others.
24.
INTELLECTUALIZATION
One talks and thinks at an intellectual rather than an emotional level about what they do or compensate what is threatening him.
Note: Exaggerated use of defense mechanisms results in NEUROSES - an anxiety-driven patterns of abnormal behavior related to over-control of instincts.
