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defense mechanism
in psychology, an unconscious mental process or coping pattern that lessens the anxiety associated with a situation or internal
conflict and protects the person from mental discomfort. In the theory of psychoanalysis, the ego, following the reality principle, conforms to the demands of the outside world, but the id (repressed unconscious), following the pleasure principle, pursues immediate gratification of desires and reduction of psychic
tension. The superego (conscience or morality) may take either side. Defense mechanisms develop in order to control impulses or feelings that lead
to inner conflicts, to reach compromises between conflicting impulses, and to reduce inner tensions. They help to manage or
avoid anxiety, aggression, hostility, resentment, and frustration. Defense mechanisms are not pathological in themselves;
they can be a means of dealing with unbearable situations. Among the most common defense mechanisms are denial, displacement, identification, projection, rationalization, reaction-formation, repression, and sublimation.
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