How We Cope when We Can’t Cope Defence Mechanisms How We Cope when We Can’t Cope

Why do We Have Defence Mechanisms? They are ways of dealing with the world that are not effective but allow us to cope for the time being. These are not necessarily healthy ways to cope but we all use them.

Example Teacher says you are not doing well in a course, so you can: Get extra help, work harder, consult a guidance counsellor for advice (these are direct ways of dealing) OR You could ignore it (until it is too late to do anything about it) “I’m a slow starter and I pull it together in the end” The teacher hates me The course sucks anyway

Types of Defence Mechanisms

Fantasy We daydream at times. It can be helpful. However, if we continually resort to it instead of dealing with reality, we will neither solve our problems nor achieve our goals.

Repression The process of pushing a painful thought or experience into our unconscious mind. Eg. Pushing feelings of hostility for someone we love into our unconscious mind. This way we are no longer aware of, or anxious about, such feelings. Amnesia is sometimes an extreme form of repression.

Rationalization If we can’t face the real reasons for our behaviour, we may convince our selves that we have other reasons. The student who has not studied all year and fails the course may blame the teacher, the subject or the time of day the course is taught. A version of this is sour grapes. If we can’t reach our goal, we say it was not worthwhile in the first place. New job: the job sux

Regression Sometimes when a problem is too big for us to handle in a mature way, we go back to the behaviour patterns of an earlier period of our lives. Tantrums, sulking or becoming dependent on others

Denial When reality is too unpleasant we may deny its existence. Ignore criticism, not notice that others are angry with them, LEAFS WILL WIN THE CUP

Projection and Displacement Projection: a person attributes their own threating impulses onto someone else Displacement: shifting an emotional focus from original focus to another person, object or situation

Which mechanism? Jim dreams of becoming a rock star. He thinks of little else. His marks are falling as a result. His parents have offered to pay for guitar lessons but he has never got around to taking these lessons. Genevieve told her friends that she did not really want the job of camp counsellor for which she had been rejected. She heard that the facilities at the camp were not that good anyway.