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Ego Defense Mechanism: A Psychological Analysis

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Introduction Psychoanalyst and personality theorist, Sigmund Freud (1856-1939), described anxiety as a feeling of danger and threat to which the ego must respond. Even though the original threat, emanates from the psychic energy of other parts of the personality, id and superego, nonetheless, a protection or defense must be launched. “The ego must reduce the conflict between the demands of the id and the strictures of society or the superego” (Schultz & Schultz, 2013). It is the ego that decides the best way to satisfy the impulses of the id and superego, choosing one or two defense mechanisms to deploy within its’ behavior. Authors, Schultz and Schultz (2013) describe two such defense mechanisms as: • Rationalization A defense mechanism …show more content…

p 54 Ego Defense Mechanisms A description of a situation in which someone may experience a conflict between the impulses of the id and superego, creating a state of anxiety, includes; a contentious relationship between a mother and daughter. Unconsciously, anxiety triggers feelings of frustration, anger, and aggression in which the daughter believes her mother is at fault for the behavior. This blame occurs whether the triggering event was real or perceived by the daughter, sometimes these feelings have no basis of fact. In this situation, the ego may use a projection defense mechanism against the perceived attack. For example; a woman’s anxiety rises to a point of attacking her mother’s credibility during a family gathering. She projects onto her mother the reasons for the anxiety, even though there was no corresponding event that anyone else could …show more content…

48). These basic instincts manifests from separate parts of the personality into a psychic energy triggering anxiety. Subsequently, the ego’s response, the deployment of defense mechanisms. Therefore, erratic and aggressive behaviors within a personality follow the threat of attack. Furthermore: “All the interests, preferences, and attitudes we display as adults were believed by Freud to be displacements of energy from the original objects that satisfied the instinctual needs” (2013,

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This fear triggers many split-second changes in the body to prepare to defend against the danger or to avoid it. This “fight-or-flight” response is a healthy reaction meant to protect a person from harm. But in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), this reaction is changed or damaged. People who have PTSD may feel stressed or frightened even when they’re no longer in danger. ”(1 NIMH)

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One of Freud’s theories is that the “Id – Ego combination dominates a person’s behavior until social awareness leads to the emergence of the superego, which recognizes that

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The lack of sexual education also contributes to young marriage and motherhood rates (Ngo & Leet-Otley, 2011). Hmong parents do not understand sexual education and do not discuss it with their children. In Meschke and Dettmer’s (2013) study on sexual health communication, Hmong daughters inferred that parents believed the talk about sexual health might encourage their daughters to be sexually active. Talking about sex is impolite and embarrassing so Hmong families do not usually have discussions on that topic. However, when they do give out information it is often wrong and exaggerated (Meschke & Dettmer, 2012).

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So, where does the threat-by-threat response in humans exist? Consider a war like World War II and one can see how humans respond to threats within their own species. It is important to note that this response was not due to territorial claims, as observed in the two animals but rather the need to

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Freud believes defense mechanisms “protect the conscious mind from contradictions between the animalistic id and the idealistic superego” (Cherry, Kendra). In Freud’s psychoanalytic theory, the id is one’s desires, and the superego is the idealistic center of the mind (Cherry, Kandra). The rational part of the mind, or the ego, “is responsible for managing the impulses of the id” and often resorts to defense mechanisms as a temporary escape from the conflicts between the id and superego (Cherry, Kandra). The defense mechanism Willy uses is Fantasy, which includes daydreaming, and by applying Freud’s theory, Willy’s daydreaming is a factor that helps to repress the desire of becoming successful and the moral understanding of there being failure. Yet, this method of coping is more constant rather than temporary within Willy, causing him to steer more into having severe

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Moral anxiety involves a fear of violating our own moral principles. In order to deal with this anxiety, Freud believed that defense mechanisms helped shield the ego from the conflicts created by the id, superego, and reality. This concept is usually represented by the Iceberg Model. This model represents the roles the Id, Ego, and Super Ego play in relation to conscious and unconscious

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Psychological defense mechanisms are common tactics used with or without realization to protect oneself. These various defense mechanisms are often used to protect one from confronting his or her weaknesses and desires that occupy the back of their mind. In A Separate Peace by John Knowles, Phineas exhibits psychological defense mechanisms due to the fact that he can not accept the reality of an experience. Denial is a common defense mechanism that consists of refusing the truth and simply denying a traumatic experience. Repression is a step above denial; repression involves dismissing and forgetting the trauma.

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(Seligman and Reichenberg, 2014) The ego is aware of both pressures from the ID and superego and seeks to moderate both and meet both needs. (Seligman and Reichenberg, 2014) This theory can used in nearly every decision that you make throughout life; from as simple as trying to make the right decision in the grocery store to deciding whether or not you should be truthfully when witnessing someone doing wrong.

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This is what psychiatrist call the “fight-or-flight” response, a typical reaction meant to protect a person from harm. Nearly everyone will experience a spectrum of reactions after trauma. Most people recover from initial symptoms naturally over time; those who continue to experience problems may be diagnosed with PTSD.

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Leper went over in his chair and collapsed against the floor” (Knowles 137). This example of displacement reveals. Another example of defense mechanisms used by Gene is rationalization. Rationalization is a defense mechanism in which feelings or behaviors are justified in a seemingly logical manner. Freud says that,"The poor ego has a still harder time of it; it has to serve three harsh masters, and it has to do its best to reconcile the claims and demands of all three...

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Transference A Freudian concept that has been proven to be useful and beneficial in exploring a client’s behavior and unexplored feelings is that of defense mechanisms (Maltby, Day ,and Macaskill 2010).Defense mechanisms are meant to protect an individual from unpleasant thoughts and emotions .According to the Freudian theory a defense mechanism is a tactic developed by the ego to protect against anxiety. Defence mechanisms are thought to safeguard the mind against feelings and thoughts that are too difficult for the conscious mind to cope with. (Maltby, Day ,and Macaskill 2010).

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For instance, Wittig (2012, p. 2) writes, "Defense mechanisms arise involuntarily in response to perceptions of danger and are adopted to alleviate anxiety." As much as new hires can change the culture, I also believe the way the current workers

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In 1923, Sigmund Freud proposed his theory that the make-up of an individual’s personality is largely governed by three fundamental components: the id, the ego, and the superego. Working through the unconscious and shaping behavior according to psychological fixations and conflicts or lack thereof, these elements evolve through five levels of psychosexual development (Freud, 1962). However, in spite of its compelling approach to the phenomenon, Freud’s structural theory of personality is riddled with limitations and as such, is subject to much criticism. The mind is layered into three states: the conscious, referring to the thoughts currently in our forefront; the preconscious, idle thoughts that can be easily accessed and brought to the conscious; and the unconscious, which houses the more instinctual drives that are repressed because it threatens the conscious’ equilibrium (Cloninger, 1996).

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