defensive mechanisms
Shielding psychological strategies
Defensive mechanisms are psychological strategies the mind uses unconsciously to protect itself from anxiety, uncomfortable thoughts, or painful realities.
In Freudian psychology, these include repression, denial, projection, and rationalization—ways of distorting or avoiding what we can't face directly.
The term appears in everyday speech to describe any habitual self-protective behavior: His sarcasm is just a defensive mechanism.
Also called defense mechanisms.
- repressionUnconscious blocking of thoughts
- denialRefusal to accept reality
- playing dumbPretending not to understand
- immune responseBody fighting foreign threats
- immune systemBody's pathogen-fighting network
reaction formation · intellectualization · projection · compartmentalization · clotting · conflict resolution · phagocytosis · displacement · sublimation · reflexes · knee jerk reaction · fight-or-flight response · fight or flight · rationalization · legal safeguards · inflammation · firewalls · surveillance systems
defensive mechanismsvulnerability
Openness to harm
openness · exposure · defenselessness · susceptibility · rawness
defensive mechanismsself-awareness
Insight into one's psyche
insight · emotional authenticity · self-examination · introspection · mindfulness
defensive mechanismsconfrontation
Direct hostile encounter
facing fears · acceptance · offensive strategies · aggression · coping mechanisms
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