Anna Freud's Ego Defense Mechanism Ch. 1
Cards
Covering up a real or perceieved weakness by emphasizing a trait one considers more desirable. Ex. A physically handicapped boy is unable to participate in football, so he compensates by becoming a great scholar.
Compensation
Refusing to acknowledge the existence of a real situation or the feelings associted with it. Ex. A woman drinks excess alcohol every day and cannot stop, failing to acknowledge that she has a problem.
Denial
The transfer of feeligns from one target to another that is considered less threatening or that is neutral. ex. A client is angry at his doctor does not express it but becomes verbally abusive with the nurse.
Displacement
An attempt to increase self worth by acquiring certain attributes and characteristics of an individual one admires. Ex. A teenaged boy who requried lengthy rehabilitation afdter an accident decides to become a physical therapist as a result of his experiences.
Identification
An attempt to avoid expressing actual emotions associated with a stressful situation by useing the intellectual processes of logic, reasoning and analysis. Ex. Susan's husband is being transderred with his job to a city far away from her parents. She hides anxiety by explaing to her parents the advantages associaterd with the move.
Intellectualization
Integrating the beliefa and values of another indicisuals into one's own ego structure. Ex. Children integrate their parents' value system into the process of conscience formation. A child says to friend "Dont cheat. Its wrong"
Introjection
Separating a thought or memory from the feeling tone or emotion associated with it. Ex. without showing any emotion, a young woman decribed being attacked and raped.
Isolation
Attributing feelings or impulses unacceptable to one's self to another person. Ex. Sue feels a strong sexual attraction to another person. Ex. Sue feels a strong sexual attraction ot her track coach and tells her friend, "Hes coming on to me!"
Projection
Attempting to make excuses or formaute logical reasons to justify unacceptable feelings or behaviors. Ex. John tells the rehab nurse, ":I drink because its the only way I can deal with my bad marriage and my worse job."
Rationalization
Preventing unacceptable or undesirable thoughts or behaviors from being expressed by exaggerating opposite thoughts of types of behaviors. Ex. Jane hates nursing. She attended nursing school to please her parents. During career day, she speaks to prospective students about the excellence og nursing as a career.
Reaction Formation
Responding to stress by retreating to an earlier level of decelopment and the comfrot measures associated with the level of fucntiong. Ex. When 2 year old Jay is hopstapilized for tonsilitis he will drink only from a bottle, although his mother states he has been drinking from a cup for 6 months.
Regression
Involuntarilty blocking unpleasant feeligns and expreiences from one's awareness. Ex/ An accident victim can remember nothing about the accident.
Repression
Rechanneling of drives or impulses that are personally or socially unacceptable into activities that are constructive. Ex. A mother whose son was killed by a drunk driver channels becomes president of Mothers Agsainst Drunk Drivers.
Sublimation
The voluntary blocking of unpleasant feeligns and expreiences from one's awareness. Ex. Scarleet o hARA says " i dont want to think about that now. Ill think about that tommorow".
Supression
Symbolically negating or canceling out an experience that one finds intolerable. Ex. Joe is nervous about his new job and yells at his widfe. On his way hom ehe stops and buys her some flower.
Undoing
