Ego defenses Flashcards
Which ego defense: Believing that people are either all good or all bad at different times due to intolerance of ambiguity. Commonly seen in borderline personality disorder. Ex: A patient says that all the nurses are cold and insensitive but that the doctors are warm and friendly
Splitting
Which ego defense: Expressing unacceptable feeling and thoughts through actions. ex: Tantrums
Acting out
Which ego defense: Transferring avoided ideas and feelings to a neutral person or object (contrast to projection). Ex: Mother yells at her child because her husband yelled at her
Displacement
Which ego defense: Failing to meet the needs/expectations of others as an indirect show of opposition. Ex: Disgruntled employee is repeatedly late to work
Passive aggressive
Which ego defense: Separating feelings from ideas and events. Ex: Describing murder in graphic detail with no emotional response
Isolation (of affect)
Which ego defense: Replacing a warded-off idea or feeling by an (unconsciously derived) emphasis on its opposite (contrast to sublimation). Ex: A patient with Libidinous thoughts enters a monastery
Reaction formation
Which ego defense: Replacing an unacceptable with with a course of action that is similar to the wish but not conflict with one’s value system. Ex: Teenager’s aggression toward his father is redirected to perform well in sports
Sublimation
Which ego defense: Alleviating negative feelings via unsolicited generosity. Ex: Mafia boss makes large donation to charity
Altruism
What are the immature ego defenses?
-Acting out
-Denial
-Displacement
-Dissociation
-Fixation
-Idealization
-Identification
-Intellectualization
-Isolation (of affect)
-Passive aggression
-Projection
-Rationalization
-Reaction formation
-Regression
-Repression
Splitting
Which ego defense: Avoiding the awareness of some painful reality. Ex: A common reaction in newly diagnosed AIDS and cancer patients
Denial
Which ego defense: Modeling behavior after another person who is more powerful (though not necessarily admired. Ex: Abused child later becomes a child abuser
Identification
Which ego defense: INTENTIONALLY withholding an idea or feeling from conscious awareness; temporary. Ex: Choosing to not worry about the big game until it is time to play
Suppression
Which ego defense: Appreciating the amusing nature of an anxiety-provoking or adverse situation. Ex: Nervous medical student jokes about the boards
Humor
Which ego defense: Involuntarily turning back the maturational clock and going back to earlier modes of dealing with the world (contrast to fixation). Ex: Seen in children uncer stress such as illness, punishment, or birth of a new sibling (eg. bedwetting in a previously toilet trained child when hospitalized)
Regression
Which ego defense: Proclaiming logical reasons for actions actually performed for other reasons, usually to avoid self-blame. Ex: After getting fired, claiming that the job was not important anyway
Rationalization
