7 Freudian Defence Mechanisms Explained

Defence mechanisms are psychological strategies used to protect us from internal conflict and to reduce anxiety. Defence mechanisms come from psychoanalytic school of therapy and were developed by the work of Sigmund Feud and his daughter Anna Freud. We might use defence mechanisms to protect us from feelings of guilt, anxiety or undesirable impulses.

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🔵 CHAPTERS
0:00 Projection
1:38 Denial
2:35 Reaction Formation
3:31 Regression
4:15 Rationalisation
4:52 Sublimation
5:27 Repression

🔵 PROJECTION: Projection consists of attributing to others, your own unacceptable thoughts, desires or impulses. For example, Peter is very controlling with his partner, Sandra. Everyday he checks her phone, Facebook account and emails for signs of an affair. In reality Sandra has always been a trustworthy and faithful partner and it’s Peter that wants an affair. Instead of acknowledging his own desires, he projects his unacceptable impulses onto Sandra.

🔵 DENIAL: Denial describes is which you refuse to accept that painful facts exist. For example, Chris drinks 20 units of alcohol every day. He lost his job after turning up for work drunk and has recently been arrested for drink driving. Despite all the evidence Chris refuses to admit that there is anything wrong. Denial involves not acknowledging reality or denying the consequences of that reality. Denial falls is a pathological defence mechanism.

🔵 REACTION FORMATION: Reaction formation describes the defence mechanism in which you unconsciously replace an unwanted or anxiety providing impulse with its opposite. For example, Bill is married to a women, has homosexual impulses but he openly criticises people that are gay. Bill is seeking to conceal his homosexual desires by adopting a homophobic stance. Reaction formation is a form of exaggerated compensation in which the person goes overboard in one direction to cover up something unwanted.

🔵 REGRESSION: Regression refers to the process of reverting to an earlier and more childlike pattern of behaviour. For example, Joanna parents divorced when she was 15 years old. This caused a lot of upset for her and she started to wet the bed and suck her thumb. Regression involves a movement back in time to an earlier stage of development. It usually occurs when you feel threatened or anxious and can happen in both adults and children.

🔵 RATIONALISATION: Rationalisation is the process of inventing good but false reasons to explain your behaviour. For example, Adam is a thief but he rationalises this by saying her only steals from rich people because they will not miss the money. It’s essentially a form of self-deception as it cushions you from disappointment, guilt or anxiety.

🔵 SUBLIMATION: Sublimation occurs when you transform your conflicted emotions or unacceptable impulses into a socially acceptable outlet. For example Malcolm redirects his aggressive urges by playing rugby. Sublimation falls into the category of a mature defence mechanism and is associated with better functioning than the neurotic and immature defences.

🔵 REPRESSION: Repression describes the mechanism whereby you push unpleasant or unacceptable feelings, memories or urges into your unconscious mind. For example, Amy was abused by her uncle when she was 3 years old. She has no memory of the abuse but struggles forming relationships with others.

🔵 ABOUT TERESA LEWIS

Teresa Lewis is the founder and Director of Lewis Psychology and a Senior Accredited psychotherapist with the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (MBACP Snr. Accred). Qualified in 1995, Teresa has been providing counselling and psychotherapy treatment for nearly 30 years. Teresa holds a masters degree in counselling and psychotherapy and is a qualified EMDR Practitioner having completed training accredited with EMDR Europe. Teresa is also a qualified adult educator and an accredited Mindfulness teacher As a recognised expert in her field Teresa is frequently asked to conduct editorial reviews and endorse counselling and psychotherapy books for international publishing houses.

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