defense reaction
Definition
- Noun:
- A psychological defense mechanism: In psychiatry and psychology, a "defense reaction" is an unconscious mental process. Its primary function is to protect the individual from experiencing anxiety, emotional conflict, or distress that arises from unacceptable or threatening instinctual desires, thoughts, or feelings.
Usage Examples
- Noun:
- Repression is a common defense reaction that pushes disturbing memories out of conscious awareness.
- The therapist helped the patient recognize that his constant joking was a defense reaction against feelings of insecurity.
Advanced Usage
- In Psychoanalytic Theory: The term is closely associated with Freudian and neo-Freudian theories, where various defense reactions (or defense mechanisms) are categorized, such as repression, denial, projection, and rationalization.
- According to psychoanalysis, the ego employs defense reactions to mediate between the id's demands and the superego's restrictions.
Variants and Related Words
- Defense mechanism (n): This is the more common and general synonym for "defense reaction" in psychological terminology.
- Denial is a primitive defense mechanism.
- Ego defense (n): A term emphasizing the role of the ego in executing these protective processes.
Synonyms
- Defense mechanism: The standard synonym in psychological discourse.
- Coping mechanism: While related, this term often implies more conscious strategies for dealing with stress, whereas "defense reaction" is specifically unconscious.
Related Phrases
- To employ a defense reaction: To unconsciously use such a mechanism.
- When confronted with criticism, he tended to employ the defense reaction of projection.
Noun
-
(psychiatry) an unconscious process that tries to reduce the anxiety associated with instinctive desires
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