Defence Mechanisms

When people experience difficulties, they have different ways of handling their pain. These different
ways of dealing with pain are called defence mechanisms. Originally conceived by Sigmund Freud,
much of the development of defence mechanisms was done by his daughter, Anna Freud. Defence
mechanisms can be healthy or unhealthy depending on the circumstances and how much a person
uses them. If you slam down your briefcase because you are mad at your wife one time, that's not a
big deal. But if you frequently take your anger out by throwing or breaking things, there might be a
better way of dealing with your anger
Name of
Defence
Mechanism

Description

Example

Repression

Burying a painful feeling or thought from your awareness

though it may resurface in symbolic form. Sometimes
considered a basis of other defence mechanisms.

You can't remember your father's

funeral.

Denial

Not accepting reality because it is too painful.

You are arrested for drunk driving

several times but don't believe you have
a problem with alcohol.

Regression

Reverting to an older, less mature way of handling

stresses and feelings

You and your roommate have get into an

argument so you stomp off into another
room and pout

Projection

Attributing your own unacceptable thoughts or feelings to

someone or something else

You get really mad at your husband but

scream that he's the one mad at you.

Splitting

Everything in the world is seen as all good or all bad with

nothing in between.

You think your best friend is absolutely

worthless because he forgot a lunch
date with you.

Isolation of
affect

Attempting to avoid a painful thought or feeling by

objectifying and emotionally detaching oneself from the
feeling

Acting aloof and indifferent toward

someone when you really dislike that
person

Displacement

Channeling a feeling or thought from its actual source to

something or someone else.

When you get mad at your sister, you

break your drinking glass by throwing it
against the wall.

Reaction
Formation

Adopting beliefs, attitudes, and feelings contrary to what

you really believe

When you say you're not angry when

you really are.

Rationalization

I always study hard for tests and I know

Justifying one's behaviors and motivations by substituting
a lot of people who cheat so it's not a big
"good", acceptable reasons for these real motivations
deal I cheated this time.

Altruism

Handling your own pain by helping others.

After your wife dies, you keep yourself

busy by volunteering at your church.

Humour

Focusing on funny aspects of a painful situation.

A person's treatment for cancer makes

him lose his hair so he makes jokes
about being bald.

Sublimation

Intense rage redirected in the form of

Redirecting unacceptable, instinctual drives into personally
participation in sports such as boxing or
and socially acceptable channels
football

Suppression

The effort to hide and control unacceptable thoughts or

feelings

You are attracted to someone but say

that you really don't like the person at all

Undoing

Trying to reverse or "undo" a thought or feeling by

You have feelings of dislike for someone

performing an action that signifies an opposite feeling than

so you buy them a gift
your original thought or feeling

Defence mechanisms can hide many different feelings from anger to love to sadness. There are a
variety of other defence mechanisms such as minimizing, blaming, diversion, withdrawal, mastery,
compensation, conversion, disassociation, idealization, identification, incorporation, introjection,
substitution, and symbolism.