Question

Writing Assignment Anxiety and Defense Mechanisms Points available: 10 We all feel anxiety, especially when faced with a potential threat. Psychodynamic psychologists have identified some defense mechanisms that people use to shield themselves from anxiety. Read the section in your text on defense mechanisms (p. 457) and think about your own life. . Please type papers. Your paper should be about 1 14 to 2 pages long. No emailed assignments will be accepted. Begin with Use complete sentences and separate paragraphs to address the following: Desertbe two situations in which you have used efense mechanism. -----O choa 2- Explain one situation in which you think someone you know was using a defense mechanism. Include the name of the defense mechanism, the general situation, and how you know they were using a defense mechanism.(1,1,2. Total 4).

Answer 1

Defense mechanisms are behaviors people use to separate themselves from unpleasant events, actions, or thoughts. These psychological strategies may help people put distance between themselves and threats or unwanted feelings, such as guilt or shame.

The idea of defense mechanisms comes from psychoanalytic theory, a psychological perspective of personality that sees personality as the interaction between three components: the id, ego, and superego.

First proposed by Sigmund Freud, this theory has evolved over time and contends that behaviors, like defense mechanisms, are not under a person’s conscious control. In fact, most people do them without realizing the strategy they’re using.

Defense mechanisms are a normal, natural part of psychological development. Identifying which type you, your loved ones, even your co-workers use can help you in future conversations and encounters.

In most cases, these psychological responses are not under a person’s conscious control. That means you don’t decide what you do when you do it. Here are a few common defense mechanisms:

1. Denial

Denial is one of the most common defense mechanisms. It occurs when you refuse to accept reality or facts. You block external events or circumstances from your mind so that you don’t have to deal with the emotional impact. In other words, you avoid the painful feelings or events.

This defense mechanism is one of the most widely known, too. The phrase, “They’re in denial” is commonly understood to mean a person is avoiding reality despite what may be obvious to people around them.

2. Repression

Unsavory thoughts, painful memories, or irrational beliefs can upset you. Instead of facing them, you may unconsciously choose to hide them in hopes of forgetting about them entirely.

That does not mean, however, that the memories disappear entirely. They may influence behaviors, and they may impact future relationships. You just may not realize the impact this defense mechanism is having.

3. Projection

Some thoughts or feelings you have about another person may make you uncomfortable. If you project those feelings, you’re misattributing them to the other person.

For example, you may dislike your new co-worker, but instead of accepting that, you choose to tell yourself that they dislike you. You see in their actions the things you wish you could do or say.

4. Displacement

You direct strong emotions and frustrations toward a person or object that doesn’t feel threatening. This allows you to satisfy an impulse to react, but you don’t risk significant consequences.

A good example of this defense mechanism is getting angry at your child or spouse because you had a bad day at work. Neither of these people is the target of your strong emotions, but reacting to them is likely less problematic than reacting to your boss.

5. Regression

Some people who feel threatened or anxious may unconsciously “escape” to an earlier stage of development.

This type of defense mechanism may be most obvious in young children. If they experience trauma or loss, they may suddenly act as if they’re younger again. They may even begin wetting the bed or sucking their thumb.

Adults can regress, too. Adults who are struggling to cope with events or behaviors may return to sleeping with a cherished stuffed animal, overeat foods they find comforting, or begin chain smoking or chewing on pencils or pens. They may also avoid everyday activities because they feel overwhelming.

6. Rationalization

Some people may attempt to explain undesirable behaviors with their own set of “facts.” This allows you to feel comfortable with the choice you made, even if you know on another level it’s not right.

For example, people who might be angry at coworkers for not completing work on time could be ignoring the fact that they’re typically late, too.

7. Sublimation

This type of defense mechanism is considered a positive strategy. That’s because people who rely on it chooses to redirect strong emotions or feelings into an object or activity that is appropriate and safe.

For example, instead of lashing out at your employees, you choose to channel your frustration into kickboxing or exercise. You could also funnel or redirect the feelings into music, art, or sports.

8. Reaction formation

People who use this defense mechanism recognize how they feel, but they choose to behave in the opposite manner of their instincts.

A person who reacts this way, for example, may feel they should not express negative emotions, such as anger or frustration. They choose to instead react in an overly positive way.

...

SHOP OUR BEST DEALS OF THE YEAR

Ready to take the initiative & join our newsletter?

Home » The Tony Robbins Blog » Mind & Meaning » 8 common defense mechanisms

Mind & Meaning

8 COMMON DEFENSE MECHANISMS

HOW WE HELP (AND HURT) OUR EMOTIONAL WELL-BEING

Posted by: Ana Yoerg

Being rejected from a job you wanted. A social setting you don’t feel comfortable in. A stressful argument with your partner. Everyone experiences these negative situations in life – they’re unavoidable. However, you can learn a good deal about yourself when you examine how you react to hard times. While some of us communicate effectively and work through a situation only to come out better on the other side, others retreat into familiar defense mechanisms to make themselves feel better and avoid painful feelings.

WHAT IS A DEFENSE MECHANISM?

For many of us, any situation that brings uncertainty triggers an unconscious protective measure that allows us to cope with unpleasant emotions. Sometimes tapping into defense mechanisms can be useful; it helps us avoid dwelling or doing something with potentially damaging ramifications. We keep ourselves in a better state – at least in the short term.

Yet in the long run, the effect of these defense mechanisms is actually the opposite as routine use can actually reduce the effectiveness of our emotional processing, make us feel as if we are not in charge of our own emotions and prevent us from working through issues. This is why it is key to become more cognizant of your personal tendencies so you don’t let your defense mechanisms overtake your progress in life. How do you handle stressful situations? Do you live in a state of denial when bad news comes your way? Do you find yourself constantly making excuses for your behavior?

Types of defense mechanisms range from shifting blame to shutting down. Though each person has their own unique set of defense mechanisms, most of the mechanisms themselves are common and easy to spot.

While you can’t expect to completely remove defense mechanisms from your life, you can become more self aware and understand how these processes are helping and hurting you. This will assist you in working through the most damaging ones so you can connect better with others and tend to your emotional well-being.

TYPES OF DEFENSE MECHANISMS

Below are types of defense mechanisms. Look into them and ask yourself if any of these apply to your behavior:

DENIAL

Denial is one of the most common defense mechanisms. When a situation or fact becomes too much to handle, you may simply refuse to experience it. By denying reality, you are essentially protecting yourself from having to face and deal with the unpleasant consequences and pain that accompany acceptance. If you tell yourself “I’m just a social drinker” instead of dealing with your serious drinking problem, or that “Every couple eventually loses the romance” instead of facing your failing marriage, you are utilizing denial as a defense mechanism. And while this may alleviate any short-term pain, in the long run, denial can prevent you from making positive changes in your life, and can have potentially destructive ramifications.

DENIAL DEFENSE MECHANISMS EXAMPLES

A smoker denies that his habit has negative health consequences so he can continue smoking.

A parent denies that her son has dropped out of college even though the school administrator has left her three voicemails telling her so.

HOW TO IDENTIFY DENIAL DEFENSE MECHANISMS

If there is overwhelming evidence to believe something and you still insist it’s not happening, you are likely utilizing denial as a defense mechanism. Signs of this are refusing to talk to someone about a possible issue, avoiding situations where you may have to face up to the truth and filling your time with busywork so you don’t have to think about a certain situation.

REPRESSION

There is a fine line between denial and repression when it comes to defense mechanisms. But where denial involves the outright refusal to accept a given reality, repression involves completely forgetting the experience. With repression, your mind makes the decision to bury the memory in your subconscious, thereby preventing painful, disturbing or dangerous thoughts from entering awareness. This is often the case with child abuse or other traumatic experiences that occurred early on in development. While repression, much like denial, may serve immediate purposes, particularly if you were tormented by a painful experience, if you do not eventually process and deal with the experience, it can have severe consequences later on in life.

REPRESSION DEFENSE MECHANISMS EXAMPLES

A soldier back from the Middle East represses a memory of killing a civilian. He has recurrent nightmares about the incident, but doesn’t consciously remember it.

A young child forgets being bitten by a dog but develops a phobia of dogs as he gets older.

HOW TO IDENTIFY REPRESSION DEFENSE MECHANISMS

Depending on how deeply an experience has been buried in your subconscious, this one can be difficult to spot. However, there are some symptoms you should pay attention to, such as angry outbursts that are not proportionate to the trigger, nightmares with repetitive themes and feelings of depression or anxiety that seem to come out of nowhere.

DISPLACEMENT

Have you ever endured a stressful day at work, then come home and taken out your frustration on your loved ones? What about a time where you had an argument with your partner, then got in your car and found your patience waning with every driver on the road? If the answer is yes, you’re experiencing one of the typical defense mechanisms of a busy adult: displacement.

With displacement, you’re transferring your emotions from the person or situation that is the target of your frustration to someone or something else entirely. Subconsciously, you believe that to confront the source of your feelings may be too dangerous or risky, so you shift the focus toward a target or situation that is less intimidating or dangerous – for example, the hapless driver in the next lane over.

While displacement may protect you from losing your job or burning a bridge, it will not help you handle the emotions you are experiencing, and you will also end up hurting someone completely innocent. This becomes an even bigger issue when you routinely use defense mechanisms like displacement with your significant other as it violates the cardinal rules of love and will eventually ruin your connection. It’s better to face the issue head-on with the person you’re actually frustrated with.

Example

Mother who is frustrated because her boss made her work late, again comes home and yells at son for asking what’s for dinner.

Blowing up at people who have done little or nothing to upset you is a classic sign of the displacement defense mechanism. May even have a favorite person to take out your anger or frustration on because you view them as safe or unable to do anything about your irrational behavior in this case the son who has nothing to do against her. If someones been called a hothead or bully, they may be routinely displaying the displacement defense mechanism.