2024 Author: Harry Day | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 15:43
In this, second part, an article about psychological defenses, I will describe the mechanisms of defenses themselves. But, before that, I would like to remind you that psychological defenses carry not only a negative connotation. They also allow us to live and interact with the world around us without consequences for our psyche. If there were no defenses, we would have lived any event in our life for a very long time and traumatically.
The defenses are divided into two groups. For primitive and mature defenses. Primitive defenses include: primitive isolation, denial, omnipotent control, primitive idealization (devaluation), projection, introjection, projective identification, splitting, dissociation. Mature defenses include: repression (repression), regression, isolation, intellectualization, rationalization, annulment, autagression, displacement, reactive education, identification, sublimation.
Primitive isolation. A primitive defense mechanism. A way to relieve psychological stress through complete isolation from the outside world. It can manifest itself in various mental abnormalities.
Negation. The process of denying what happened. A person does not seem to remember at all what happened to him, what feelings he experienced. Indeed, if experiences are too painful, it is easier to deny their existence than to experience and acknowledge them.
The control. Desire and belief that absolutely everything can be controlled. Man tries to exert his influence everywhere. And he poorly understands that this is not possible in all cases.
Devaluation. A process in which a person does not regard his (and others') achievements and successes as insignificant and insignificant.
Projection. Assignment to another person of feelings, thoughts, actions that still belong to the person himself, and not to another.
Introjection. With introjection, an external stimulus is mistakenly perceived as an internal one. This can serve as the fact that we can not try to communicate with real people, and conduct a dialogue with internal objects.
Projective identification. A rather confusing defense mechanism. In fact, this is an attempt to force another person to act as the person himself would like, but this process is not recognized and understood.
Split. With splitting, a person cannot accept and understand that someone (and himself) can be good and bad at different times. We can say that a person sees the world only from one side, and does not even imply the presence of others. This is clearly manifested in children's faith in parents. That they are the smartest, the strongest, and generally the most.
Dissociation. The process by which everything that happens to a person is perceived as if it is happening to someone else. This allows you to remove from yourself those experiences that you would not want to face.
Crowding out. The purpose of this protection is to remove from the field of consciousness everything that is negatively perceived. In this way, we gradually drive out painful memories from the past.
Regression. Return to the past state. A person seems to be returning to some kind of childhood, in which it was much safer and calmer. All people have this protection.
Insulation. A person is literally isolated from others. Goes into his thoughts, fantasies. Someone devotes all the time to creativity or science. In this case, the entire external world fades into the background.
Intellectualization. A process in which thinking prevails, rather than experiencing. Such a process is necessary for controlling feelings and emotions, trying to express destructive experiences and in this way master them. They are referred to as defenses of the highest order. in order to supplant feelings, you first need to face them. That is, they are somehow present.
Rationalization. A person tries to give everything a logical and morally acceptable explanation of an act, thought, feeling, while the true motives remain outside the explanation. This defense is widespread and it is very difficult to know if it is part of healthy thinking or is pathological.
Cancellation. A defense mechanism that allows a person to make it appear as if there was no previous thought or action at all.
Outagression. With autagression, all negative feelings and desires are directed at oneself, and not at the direct object that causes them. This can be due to various reasons. All of us at least once in our life have come across people who, in case of misfortune, say: "This is my fault …", and do not get angry at the real culprit.
Bias. When displaced, real and painful objects (feelings, thoughts) are replaced by more neutral and less traumatic ones.
Reactive education. With this protection, actual feelings and reactions are replaced by the opposite. For example, bitterness is replaced by laughter, etc.
Identification. When faced with painful experiences and events, a person, as it were, ascribes to himself the feelings of the thoughts and actions of another person, usually very significant for him. A striking example can be cited when considering identification with the aggressor. The abused person himself becomes aggressive to compensate for the pain of the past.
Sublimation. The healthiest defense. During sublimation, our energy is directed not to destructive actions, but to creativity and creation. Sublimation can manifest itself in: writing poetry, paintings, intellectual activity (everyone knows who Einstein and Lomonosov are).
If you have any questions, you can ask me, and I am ready to answer them.
Mikhail Ozhirinsky - psychoanalyst, group analyst.
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