People have certain unconscious aids within us which allow us to be at peace with ourselves and with those around us since they help us to behave in a social way accepted.
However, the use of these aids is not always beneficial for us because, if it is done in a inadequate and repeated, it can end up causing us to lose some awareness of the reality that surrounds.
The processes that extend that hand to us are known as defense mechanisms and in this Psychology-Online article, we want to let you know, as well as facilitate what are they, their types and examples so that you learn to identify and use them in an appropriate way.
Defense mechanisms are unconscious processes of individuals who have the function of protectionIn particular, they are intended to protect your idea of yourself and your self-esteem.
The first to describe these mechanisms was Sigmund Freud, who associated them with both an internal and external struggle, whose main objective was to make the suffering caused by ideas or emotions disappear.
Here you will find more information about Defense mechanisms according to Anna Freud.
The function of these mechanisms is to try to minimize the consequences that it can have on an individual a very emotionally intense situation so that, in this way, the person can continue to function usually.
The defense mechanism functions are as follows:
- Achieve a rebalancing between internal and external realities.
- Self-regulate the possibility of satisfying impulses.
- Facilitate adequate adaptation with society.
- Allow a correct development of the personality
- Protect the emotional balance.
We found different types of defense mechanisms, classified by different authors. However, in this article, we will rely on the classification used by McWilliams.
- Primary defense mechanismsThese usually appear in people during the first stages of life and tend to be related to attitudes of denial of reality.
- Secondary defense mechanisms: on the contrary, these appear during the late stages of an individual's development. They are characterized because they preserve the criterion of reality in people.
Within each of the general groups of defense mechanisms, we find different more specific mechanisms.
Primary defense mechanisms
- Retreat
- Denial
- Omnipotent control
- Idealization and devaluation
- Projection
- Introjection
- Projective identification
- Cleavage
- Dissociation
Secondary defense mechanisms
- Repression
- Regression
- Isolation
- Intellection
- Rationalization
- Compartmentalization
- Annulment
- Turn against himself
- Displacement
- Reactive training
- Investment
- Performance
- Sexualization
- Sublimation
Each of the primary defense mechanisms is explained below:
1. Retreat
The individual closes in on himself, distancing himself from reality through the use of fantasies and dreams. The use of this type of mechanism allows the subject escape from a painful reality, but without distorting it. The disadvantage of this type of mechanism is that if the individual uses it repeatedly, this will limit the possibility of taking charge of reality.
Example: a baby who, faced with overstimulation, decides fall asleep to avoid it.
2. Denial
What is happening is rejected in a certain way with the conviction that, if it is not recognized as real, it is not really happening. What the subject does is block those unacceptable eventss so that in this way they do not become part of consciousness.
3. Omnipotent control
Part of the fantasy basis that the subject believes that the source of what happens to us is oneself. It is not considered that others can influence our life according to their will. This is a good motivating method to achieve the objectives that the subject proposes, however, to In the long run, you will not be able to create logical and real causal relationships that help you achieve your goals.
4. Idealization and devaluation
In idealization, the subject using this mechanism shows a state of dependence on another person to which he grants a special value or power. They consider that they will always be able to solve their difficulties.
On the contrary, the devaluation mechanism appears when the subject encounters reality and stops idealizing the individual, realizing that they have no power.
5. Projection
With this mechanism, subjects attribute their own and unacceptable acts, thoughts and behaviors to other people. That is to say, he denies that he or she has carried them out of his own free will, but that it has been the fault of the outside that they have occurred.
6. Introjection
An act or behavior is incorporated into the subject that is caused by something that is outside and that, in reality, is completely different from that individual.
This behavior is common in stages of mourning, where the person who has suffered the loss begins to adopt behaviors and ways of being of the deceased person.
7. Projective identification
It is the base from which the acquaintance starts Stockholm syndrome. People try to reduce the anxiety they feel by identifying with the bully. It consists of the idea of justify the other person's actions to avoid the suffering of thinking the damage they are doing.
8. Cleavage
Mechanism where separate the world into good and bad. It is a form of distortion that helps the individual to resolve certain confusing and threatening situations. It is not at all uncommon to find a person who at this very moment finds a bad person who was considered good last week.
9. Dissociation
I know create a different representation of yourself to, in this way, disconnect with the current experience. If individuals resort to this mechanism many times, they may come to consider that within them there are different selves.
Each of the secondary defense mechanisms is discussed below:
1. Repression
The person is fully aware of what is happening, however, voluntarily decide to forget or skip it. It is a defense mechanism that triggers an inhibition reflex in the subject. For example, it is often seen in people who have sexual desires considered unacceptable by the rest of society and repress them.
2. Regression
Unconsciously, the subject returns to adopt behaviors and ways of functioning from their childhood so that this allows you to avoid the conflict you have to face. It is considered a fluctuating and common defense mechanism in all people.
3. Isolation
This defense mechanism consists of separate thoughts from emotions. That is, it is possible to be conscious and can think about a specific fact, but the emotional meaning is separated, so it never affects the individual. This mechanism can be very useful for those whose professions cannot be affected by their emotions, as in the case of doctors, judges, the military.
4. Intellection
It is very similar to the previously described mechanism, however, in this case, the person does recognize the existence of an affect towards that fact, but he is not able to feel it. It could be said that the person theoretically recognizes the affect, but it is not possible for him to express it in himself. That is, the situation is dealt with cognitively and is not connected with the emotional plane.
5. Rationalization
They need justify certain facts to avoid conflict with themselves. Through this mechanism, people select from among all the explanations and motives towards some acts which are recognized as unacceptable, those which will allow them justify them.
6. Compartmentalization
This defense mechanism is used by people who have two or more contrary ideas, behaviors or attitudes at the same time. In this way, they can allow that both ideas do not conflict and they contradict each other in your mind, but exist at the same time.
7. Annulment
The defense mechanism of nullification consists of, unconsciously, offset a painful feeling or emotion so that it is totally canceled thanks to another compensatory behavior. For example: a man who exercises gender violence over his wife, he will bring her roses to nullify his aggressive acts.
8. Turn against himself
The subject redirects those emotions which were destined for another on his own person. It is not to anyone's liking to realize that someone cannot be counted on, so instead of feeling anger towards her, the subject using this mechanism will develop this feeling towards him.
9. Displacement
This mechanism starts from the base of the redirection of emotions from one natural object to another, since expressing it on the first of these can be too distressing. For example, in a moment of anger with our parents, instead of yelling at them, we walked into our room and yelled into the pillow.
10. Reactive training
People with aggressive and impulsive attitudes tend to use this mechanism to adapt their behavior. Is about modify an emotion or impulse into its opposite. For example, hatred in love, envy in gratitude.
11. Investment
It is related to the interaction of the person with the situation that he experiences, going from being a passive subject of this where he suffers the painful consequences to being someone active in her. This defense mechanism is seen in those subjects who go from being dependent people to people who need others to depend on them.
12. Performance
People express their unconscious desires or conflicts through actions in order to avoid having to be aware of the ideas or emotions that accompany them. It is considered an investment mechanism, but with the addition of the performance of an action by the subject. Within psychology, this mechanism is known in turn as acting out.
13. Sexualization
Feelings of terror or pain are transformed into pleasant experiences. This mechanism is usually observed in subjects who are victims of aggression and depression, which To make their situations more bearable, they turn bad times into pleasant and rewarding.
14. Sublimation
The sublimation It is the mature defense mechanism which allows individuals to channel all those drives (stimuli or impulses, usually of sexual or aggressive content) and guide them towards behaviors considered acceptable in our society.
This article is merely informative, in Psychology-Online we do not have the power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.
If you want to read more articles similar to Defense mechanisms: what they are, types and examples, we recommend that you enter our category of Cognitive psychology.
