Psychodynamic Defense Mechanisms

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The psychodynamic theory is a modern theory built upon Sigmund Freud’s theory of psychoanalysis. The psychodynamic theory explains our personality through the conscious and unconscious state of mind in terms of unwanted thoughts and feelings. Freud believed that people have anxiety that they try to keep out of their conscious mind and use defense mechanisms to do so. A few examples of these defense mechanisms are: reaction formation, projection, and denial. Reaction formation is: turning aggressive impulses into their opposite, projection is: attributing your own aggressiveness onto someone else, and denial is: refusing to believe something is true or has occurred. I do completely believe that these mechanisms are used to hide anxiety in the unconscious. Defense mechanisms are interesting to study to discover if one indeed uses them. …show more content…

Displacement is directing aggressive behaviors onto another object instead of the intended target: one that would not cause damage or harm. For example, punching a pillow after someone has made one angry is using the displacement mechanism. I recall a few instances in which my mind has used displacement: such as sports, writing, and working out. In volleyball practice and games, I have gone to practice after a stressful, anxious day and have directed those aggressive impulses into hitting, diving for the ball, and even being aggressive in playing with others. When school becomes stressful I will direct anxiety towards writing. I will write quick, hard, and usually it will be very unorganized. I also use displacement in working out. I will run hard to feel the burn and push myself to get rid of nervousness or

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