Here's a quick quiz
that should help you lock down your ease with defense mechanism.
What are defense mechanisms? Wikipedia
wants to tell you:
A defense mechanism is an unconscious psychological mechanism
that reduces anxiety arising from unacceptable or potentially
harmful stimuli. Defense mechanisms are not to be confused with
conscious coping strategies. Sigmund Freud was one of the first
proponents of this construct.
Okay, but which defense mechanism is which? Here's a short list
of examples, courtesy of Simply
Psychology. You provide the name of the defense mechanism. Good
luck!
1. A young man has no conscious awareness of his desire to hurt
his father.
2. A smoker refuses to admit to herself that smoking is bad for
one's health.
3. A person comes to believe that their anger toward a rival
started with the rival's misbehavior toward them.
4. A person frustrated by their boss, goes home and kicks their
dog.
5. An angry person feels relief from working long hours.
How'd you do? Answers are in comments.
There are more defense mechanisms where these came from. Read up
on the sites linked above and also here:
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Good luck on the exam!
-- Will Baum,
LCSW
