Type |
Description |
Example |
Potential Diagnosis |
Conversion |
The development of physical symptoms that cannot be explained by pathophysiology or physical injury |
John's arm becomes suddenly paralyzed after he was threatening to hit someone |
Conversion Disorder |
Splitting |
Failing to reconcile both positive and negative attributes into a whole understanding of a person or situation, resulting in all-or-none thinking |
Jane says that all the male nurses are cold and insensitive, but the female doctors are warm and friendly |
Borderline Disorder |
Pathological idealization and devaluation |
Idealization and devaluation are natural results of a splitting defense |
Idealization and devaluation are natural results of a splitting defense |
Borderline Personality Disorder |
Repression |
Unconsciously pushing threatening or unacceptable thoughts, feelings, or memories out of awareness |
A young child is bitten by a dog. They later develop a severe phobia of dogs but have no memory of when or how this fear originated. They have repressed the painful memory of the fearful experience with the dog, so they are unaware of exactly where their fear came from. |
Projection |
Attributing one's own unacceptable feelings, impulses, or thoughts to others |
A wife is attracted to a male co-worker but can't admit her feelings, so when her husband talks about a female co-worker, she becomes jealous and accuses him of being attracted to the other woman. |
Denial |
Refusing to acknowledge or accept the reality of a stressful or threatening situation |
After the unexpected death of a loved one, a person might refuse to accept the reality of the death and deny that anything has happened |
Sublimation |
Channeling socially unacceptable impulses or desires into socially acceptable activities or outlets |
A woman who recently went through a breakup may channel her emotions into a home improvement project |
Displacement |
Redirecting emotions or impulses from their original source to a less threatening or more acceptable target |
Manager screams at an employee, the employee doesn't scream back—but he yelled at his spouse later that night. |
Regression |
Reverting to an earlier stage of development in the face of stress or anxiety |
A driver stuck in traffic may get angry and throw a tantrum, even though he doesn't usually behave that way |
Rationalization |
Creating logical or reasonable explanations to justify or explain away threatening or unacceptable behavior or feelings |
A student who is rejected from her dream college may explain that she's happy to be attending a school that's less competitive and more welcoming |
Intellectualization |
Dealing with emotional conflicts or stressors by focusing on abstract or intellectual aspects, rather than the emotional or personal significance |
Someone endlessly researches the details of a significant illness to avoid the anxiety, fear, and sadness of receiving a diagnosis |
Undoing |
Engaging in behavior to counteract or undo a previous unacceptable thought, feeling, or action |
After thinking about being violent with someone, one would then be overly nice or accommodating to them |
Isolation |
Separating disturbing or threatening thoughts or feelings from the rest of one's thoughts or emotions, often by compartmentalizing them |
Someone describes the day their house burnt down in a factual way without displaying any emotion |
Identification/Introjection |
Adopting the characteristics, behaviors, or values of someone else, often perceived as stronger or more powerful, to cope with feelings of inadequacy or anxiety |
A child developing the behavior of his or her parents without conscious realization of this process |
Compensation |
Overemphasizing or exaggerating a trait or behavior to make up for perceived deficiencies or to cope with feelings of inferiority |
People with difficult family lives may direct their energy toward excelling at work |
Acting out |
The development of detrimental behaviors that distract attention and energy away from other stressors |
someone who has intrusive thoughts about a traumatic event but pushes these thoughts out of their mind |
Avoidance |
Dismissing thoughts or feelings that are uncomfortable or keeping away from people, places, or situations associated with uncomfortable thoughts or feelings |
One avoids the location of a traumatic motor vehicle accident or avoids driving completely |
Schizoid Fantasy |
Creating an internal retreat into one’s imagination to avoid uncomfortable situations |
A victim of physical abuse got lost in thought thinking of her good days upon hearing that she'll meet the abuser |
Anticipation |
The devotion of one’s effort to solving problems before they arise |
Someone prepares for an important job interview by practicing their answers to the toughest questions |
Humor |
Decreasing or combating the negative emotions associated with a situation by using comedy |
Telling a funny story about someone during a eulogy |
Reaction Formation |
Replacing one’s initial impulse toward a situation or idea with the opposite impulse |
A young boy who bullies a young girl because, on a subconscious level, he's attracted to her |
Sexualization |
Associating sexual aspects to one’s experience of certain people, places, objects, or ideas |
Adrift during her mother’s death, Jane began to flirt with her male trainer to avoid thinking about her mother |
Suppression |
Consciously choosing to block ideas or impulses that are undesirable, as opposed to repression, a subconscious process |
Someone who has intrusive thoughts about a traumatic event but pushes these thoughts out of their mind |
