Defense Mechanisms: Psychological Strategies for Coping
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Definition: A mental
maneuver that one
consciously or
unconsciously chooses
to use to distort or
falsify the truth of one’s
experience in order to
protect oneself from
feeling painful emotions
like shame, guilt, or
anxiety.
L
Y
I
N
G
One doesn’t tell the truth
for either self-gain or to
spare feeling ridicule,
rejection, or punishment.
Phrases like “I swear I
didn’t do it,” or “It doesn’t
mean anything” are often
used when we know we
haven’t lived up to our
higher selves.
In what circumstances do
you think people lie the
most?
R
A
T
I
O
N
A
L
I
Z
A
T
I
O
N
Occurs when we tell an
element of the truth, but
deny the larger truth of the
matter.
For example, “I could
have won the race but the
track was wet.” The
larger truth was that
someone was faster.
“I got fired, but the boss
was a jerk.” Failures are
a threat to the ego
rationalization doesn’t hurt
as bad.
REGRESSION
When adult defense
mechanisms stop working
for us, we regress to a
personality we had at
childhood.
For example, when an
adult doesn’t take
responsibility, he says,
“It’s not my fault, it’s her
fault.”
Immature patterns of
behavior emerge such as
bragging.
REPRESSION
The person forces the
unacceptable or threatening
feeling out of awareness to a
point where he/she becomes
unaware of it.
Examples could be a simple
reprimand or as serious as a
rape.
A person is asked, “how do you
get along with your mother” and
he responds, “just fine” as he
turns pale. Negative feelings
about the mother are so
unacceptable that they block
his awareness.
DENIAL
The person doesn’t
acknowledge the validity
of the matter but
acknowledges its
presence. They oppose
force with force.
For example, the alcoholic
expresses, “I may like to
drink, but I’m not an
alcoholic.”
Or a smoker concludes
that the evidence linking
cigarette use to health
problems is bogus.
SUPPRESSION
The person is aware of the
unacceptable desire and
validates it but intentionally
tries to keep it from expressing
itself.
For example, “I know I’m an
alcoholic so I’m going on the
wagon.”
A homosexual who intentionally
doesn’t date members of the
same sex so that the
unacceptable does not express
itself.
An introvert is conditioned to be
an extrovert.
He often suppress anger.
PROJECTION
The person attributes
one’s own perceived
negative attributes onto
someone else.
For example, Bill blames
the instructor for a bad
grade when he didn’t
study.
Sara says, “You envy me,”
when Sara really envies
the other person.
Sam cheats on his spouse
and blames the spouse
for cheating.
Which Defense Mechanisms Do
You Use the Most?
Lying
Rationalization
Distraction
Regression
Repression
Denial
Suppression
Projection
Remove Defense Mechanisms by………
Reading about them
Writing about your feelings and actions
Talking to a close friend or therapist
Meditating
Praying
EFT
Name the Defense Mechanism
Joe is mad at Sue as he grits his teeth. Sue asks,
are you mad at me, and he replies, “No, I’m not mad
at all as he puts a smile on his face.
Name the Defense Mechanism
The person who doesn’t study says, “the ‘F’ grade I
got on the test was totally unfair.”
Name the Defense Mechanism
Karl, a tax accountant teacher instructs his students
to follow the rules of tax law but later Karl cheats on
his taxes.
Name the Defense Mechanism
Bill Gates tells you your reply is illogical and you
reply, “you’re the illogical one!” I’m smarter than you
anyway.
Name the Defense Mechanism
“Cheating on my taxes is no big deal. Everybody
does it”
Defense mechanisms are mental maneuvers used to distort the truth and protect oneself from painful emotions like shame, guilt, and anxiety. Lying, rationalization, regression, repression, denial, suppression, and projection are common defense mechanisms explored in this content.
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Presentation Transcript
Defense Mechanisms Definition: A mental maneuver that one consciously or unconsciously chooses to use to distort or falsify the truth of one s experience in order to protect oneself from feeling painful emotions like shame, guilt, or anxiety.
LYING One doesn t tell the truth for either self-gain or to spare feeling ridicule, rejection, or punishment. Phrases like I swear I didn t do it, or It doesn t mean anything are often used when we know we haven t lived up to our higher selves. In what circumstances do you think people lie the most?
RATIONALIZATION Occurs when we tell an element of the truth, but deny the larger truth of the matter. For example, I could have won the race but the track was wet. The larger truth was that someone was faster. I got fired, but the boss was a jerk. Failures are a threat to the ego rationalization doesn t hurt as bad.
REGRESSION When adult defense mechanisms stop working for us, we regress to a personality we had at childhood. For example, when an adult doesn t take responsibility, he says, It s not my fault, it s her fault. Immature patterns of behavior emerge such as bragging.
REPRESSION The person forces the unacceptable or threatening feeling out of awareness to a point where he/she becomes unaware of it. Examples could be a simple reprimand or as serious as a rape. A person is asked, how do you get along with your mother and he responds, just fine as he turns pale. Negative feelings about the mother are so unacceptable that they block his awareness.
DENIAL The person doesn t acknowledge the validity of the matter but acknowledges its presence. They oppose force with force. For example, the alcoholic expresses, I may like to drink, but I m not an alcoholic. Or a smoker concludes that the evidence linking cigarette use to health problems is bogus.
SUPPRESSION The person is aware of the unacceptable desire and validates it but intentionally tries to keep it from expressing itself. For example, I know I m an alcoholic so I m going on the wagon. A homosexual who intentionally doesn t date members of the same sex so that the unacceptable does not express itself. An introvert is conditioned to be an extrovert. He often suppress anger.
PROJECTION The person attributes one s own perceived negative attributes onto someone else. For example, Bill blames the instructor for a bad grade when he didn t study. Sara says, You envy me, when Sara really envies the other person. Sam cheats on his spouse and blames the spouse for cheating.
Which Defense Mechanisms Do You Use the Most? Lying Rationalization Distraction Regression Repression Denial Suppression Projection
Remove Defense Mechanisms by Reading about them Writing about your feelings and actions Talking to a close friend or therapist Meditating Praying EFT
Name the Defense Mechanism Joe is mad at Sue as he grits his teeth. Sue asks, are you mad at me, and he replies, No, I m not mad at all as he puts a smile on his face.
Name the Defense Mechanism The person who doesn t study says, the F grade I got on the test was totally unfair.
Name the Defense Mechanism Karl, a tax accountant teacher instructs his students to follow the rules of tax law but later Karl cheats on his taxes.
Name the Defense Mechanism Bill Gates tells you your reply is illogical and you reply, you re the illogical one! I m smarter than you anyway.
Name the Defense Mechanism Cheating on my taxes is no big deal. Everybody does it
