What are defense mechansims? Discuss few defense mechanisims.            

• According to Dr. Sigmund Freud defense mechanisms are ways in which the ego unconsciously tries to cope with unacceptable libidinal desires and resolves conflicts.

• In simple words, Ego defense mechanism are ways of resolving the conflict by distorting the reality unconsciously.

• It distorts reality to resolve conflicts and therefore provides temporary relief.

• Its optimum use is healthy but excessive usage lead to maladjustment.

• Defense mechanisms are regulated by the ego. It is different from lying because lying is intentional but use of defense mechanism is unconscious.

Some important defense mechanisms are as follows:

1. Repression: In this type of defence mechanism, anxiety-provoking behaviours or thoughts are totally dismissed by the unconscious.

• People become totally unaware of that wish or desire when they have repressed it. When a person says, 'I do not know why I did that.'

• Repression may be referred as unconscious forgetting. It is the basic defence mechanism.

• It is unconscious forgetting.

2. Regression: It occurs when a person's resolutions of problems at any stage of development is less than adequate.

• It is going back to good old golden days of childhood.

3. Displacement: Redirective an impulse towards a less threatening or safer target.

4. Projection: People attribute their own traits, attitudes or subjective processes to others. A person who has strong aggressive tendencies may see other people as acting in an excessively aggressive way towards him.

• It is blaming others for ones own conflicts, anxieties and guilt.

5. Denial: A person totally refuses to accept the reality. Someone suffering from HTV/AIDS may altogether deny his/her illness.

6. Reaction Formation: Person denies a disapproved motive through giving strong expression to its opposite, e.g., a person with strong sexual urges, who channels his/her energy into religious activities, presents a classical example of reaction formation.

7. Rationalization: A person tries to make unreasonable feelings or behaviour seem reasonable and acceptable. When a student buys a set of new pens after doing poorly in an examination, he/she may try to rationalize his/her behaviour by asserting, 'I will do much better with these pens.'

• It is giving good excuses and basically using 'sour grape phenomena'.