ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE

TOPIC

In

every

conflicts

human
are

being,

bound

to

intra

-psychic

occur,

usually

because of sexual and aggressive impulses

and tension. Usually, (or maybe hopefully),
these conflicts are resolved by themselves
in

short

amount

of

time;

sometimes this is not the case.

however

Contd....

Every now and then, our internal conflicts can

last

for

long

periods

of

times,

and

can

potentially cause us great harm. Oftentimes

anxiety can wear and tear at us, and should not
be underestimated. Fortunately, our body has
mechanisms to defend us from unpleasant
emotions and feelings. So today we will discuss
about defense mechanisms

PREVIOUS
KNOWLEDGE

INTRODUCTION OF THE
TOPIC

Defense

mechanisms

are

methods

of

attempting to protect self and cope with

basic drives or emotionally painful thoughts,
feelings, or events.

Contd .

The purpose of Defense mechanisms is to

reduce Or eliminate anxiety. They can be
helpful when used in very small doses, and
if overused, become ineffective and can
lead to breakdown to personality

DEFINITIONS OF DEFENSE
MECHANISMS

Defense mechanisms are a type of process

or

coping

psychological

that

results

responses

in

automatic

exhibited

as

means of protecting the individual against

anxiety.

Contd ..

Defense mechanisms are Unconscious

mental processes used to protect the ego
against
anxiety,
shame
or
other
unacceptable feelings or thoughts.

Defence mechanisms are the processes

which
help
in
protection
against
psychological danger.

Contd .

Defense mechanisms are thought to

safeguard the mind against feelings and
thoughts that are too difficult for the
conscious mind to cope with. In some
instances, defense mechanisms are thought
to keep inappropriate or unwanted thoughts
and impulses from entering the conscious
mind.

1) Denial

Denial involves blocking external events from

awareness. If some situation is just too much to
handle, the person just refuses to experience
it. As you might imagine, this is a primitive and
dangerous defense - no one disregards reality
and gets away with it for long! It can operate by
itself or, more commonly, in combination with
other, more subtle mechanisms that support it

Contd

For example, smokers may refuse to

admit to themselves that smoking is bad for
their health.

Denial is commonly seen when there is

death of loved one.

2) Reaction formation

This is where a
person
goes
beyond denial and
behaves
in
the
opposite way to
which he or she
thinks or feels.

Contd ..

Conscious feelings are the opposite of the

unconscious. Love - hate. Shame - disgust and
moralizing are reaction formation against
sexuality.

Usually a reaction formation is marked by

showiness and compulsiveness.

examples include:* A jealous boy who hates

his elder brother may show him exaggerated
respect love.

3)

Intectualization

Intellectualization
is
defined
as A form of
isolation; concentrating on
the intellectual components
of a situation so as to
distance oneself from the
associated
anxietyprovoking
emotions;
separation of emotion from
ideas;
avoiding
unacceptable emotions by
focusing on the intellectual
aspects
(e.g.rituals,
undoing, rationalization)

4) Undoing

Consciously doing something to counteract

or makeup for a transgression or wrong
doing.

For example- Giving a treat to a child who

is being punished for a wrong doing.

5) Dissociation

It is the unconscious
separation of
painful feelings and
emotions from an
unacceptable idea,
situation or object.

For
exampleAdult
remembers
nothing
of
childhood
sexual
abuse

6) Conversion

Conversion
is
the
unconscious expression
of intra- psychic conflict
symbolically
through
physical symptoms
For
example

A
student awakens with a
headache in the morning
of a final examination
and feels too ill to take
the test.

7) Projection

In this mechanism, an
individual puts the blame of
his own failure upon others
and
some
unfavourable
factors of his environment.
Blaming others for his
mistake.

e.g. 1) A student comes late

to the class excuses by
saying that the bus or train
was late or traffic jam

8) Sublimation

It is a mechanism in which
socially
unacceptable
impulses or idealizations are
consciously transformed into
socially acceptable actions or
behavior, possibly resulting in
a long-term conversion of the
initial impulse.
Example 1) aggressiveness
might be transformed to
competitiveness in business
or sports.

9) Repression
Repression
is
defined
by
Keeping
distressing
thoughts
and
feelings buried in
the unconscious
Exampleforgetting a loved
ones
birthday
after fight.

10) Regression

Regression is defined as A
reversion to immature patterns
of behavior. The example
might be a teenager not allowed
to go on a trip for spring break,
so he or she might throw a
temper tantrum and scream and
cry at his or her parents.
Conversely, a teenager might
revert back to infant behavior to
receive sympathy from his or her
parents.

11) Rationalisation

Rationalization
is
defined as Creating
false
but
plausible
excuses
to
justify
unacceptable behavior.
Example- A student fail
in exam excuses by
saying
that
hostel
environment
is
not
good i.e giving rationale
of his failure

12) Compensation

It is an attempt to cover ones deficiency in

one field by exhibiting his strength in
another field

e.g. If a student is not good in his studies,

may show his ability in sports

13) Identification

Identification is defined as
increasing self-esteem by
forming an imaginary or
real alliance with some
person or group. This is a
fairly common method of
attempting to forget about
ones
troubles,
happens
fairly often, especially in
insecure people. A person
joining a sports team, social
clique or even subcultures
are all examples of this.

14) Displacement

Displacement is defined as
Diverting emotional feelings
(usually
anger)
from
their
original source to a substitute
target. This frequently occurs in
families, where we often see the
father getting mad at the
mother. The mother then takes
her anger out on her son, the son
in turn yells at his little sister, the
little sister kicks the dog, and the
dog bites the cat. Another
example may be a boxer taking
out his frustration on a punching
bag or an opponent.

15) Withdrawal

Some persons withdraw themselves from

the

circumstances

that

cause

tension,

frustration or pain e.g. If a person is being

humiliated or laughed at, he may shut
himself in a room and may not need any
one.

conclusion

summarization

ANY
QUERY

RECAPTUALIZATION

BI
BL
IO
G
RA
PH
Y

Bibliography

-Sreevani R. A guide to mental health and

psychiatric nursing 2nd edition. Jaypee brothers.
-Bhatia M.S.Essentials of Psychiatry 5th edition
New Delhi CBC publishers.
-Kapoor Bimla Text book of Psychiatric Nursing
Ist edition Vol II Delhi, Kumar Pubishers.
-Shah L.P.S. Shah Hema, A hand book of
psychiatry 3rd Edn Mumbai Vora publishers.