Defense mechanism

Defense Mechanism

Defense Mechanism (pronunciation: /dɪˈfɛns ˈmɛkəˌnɪzəm/) is a psychological strategy brought into play by various entities to cope with reality and to maintain self-image.

Etymology

The term "Defense Mechanism" is derived from the field of psychology. The word "defense" comes from the Old French defens, meaning "to protect", and "mechanism" comes from the Latin mechanismus, meaning "a mechanical contrivance".

Definition

A Defense Mechanism is an unconscious psychological mechanism that reduces anxiety arising from unacceptable or potentially harmful stimuli. Defense mechanisms are often classified into categories such as denial, displacement, projection, and repression.

Types of Defense Mechanisms

There are several types of defense mechanisms. Some of the most common include:

Denial: This is a defense mechanism in which a person is faced with a fact that is too uncomfortable to accept and rejects it instead, insisting that it is not true despite what may be overwhelming evidence.

Displacement: This involves taking out our frustrations, feelings, and impulses on people or objects that are less threatening.

Projection: This is a theory in psychology in which humans defend themselves against their own unconscious impulses or qualities by denying their existence in themselves while attributing them to others.

Repression: This is the psychological attempt to direct one's own desires and impulses toward pleasurable instincts by excluding them from one's consciousness and holding or subduing them in the unconscious.

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Defense mechanism