Definitions
blocking a disturbance in the rate of speech when a person’s thoughts and speech are proceeding at an average rate but are suddenly and completely interrupted, perhaps even in the middle of a sentence. The gap may last from several seconds up to a minute. Blocking is often a part of the thought disorder found in schizophrenic disorders.
compensation making up for real or imagined handicap, limitation, or lack of gratification in one area of personality by overemphasis in another area to counter the effects of failure, frustration, and limitation; e.g., the blind compensate by increased sensitivity in hearing; the unpopular student compensates by becoming an outstanding scholar; small men compensate for short stature by demanding a great deal of attention and respect; a nurse who does not have manual dexterity chooses to go into psychiatric nursing.
confabulating filling in gaps of memory by inventing what appear to be suitable memories as replacements. This symptom may occur in various amnestic disorders but is most often seen in Korsakoff’s syndrome (deterioration due to alcohol) and in dementia.
conversion psychological difficulties are translated into physical symptoms without conscious will or knowledge; e.g., pain and immobility on moving your writing arm the day of the exam.
denial an intolerable thought, wish, need, or reality factor, is disowned automatically; e.g., a student, when told of a failing grade, acts as if he never heard of such a possibility.
displacement transferring the emotional component from one idea, object, or situation to another, more acceptable one. Displacement occurs because these are painful or dangerous feelings diat cannot be expressed toward the original object; e.g., kicking the dog after a bad day at school or work; anger with clinical instructor gets transferred to classmate who was late to meet you for lunch.
dissociation splitting off or separation of differing elements of the mind from each other. There can be separation of ideas, concepts, emotions, or experiences from the rest of the mind. Dissociated material is deeply repressed and becomes encapsulated and inaccessible to the rest of the mind. This usually occurs as a result of some very painful experience, for example, split of affect from idea in anxiety disorders and schizophrenia.
fixation a state in which personality development is arrested in one or more aspects at a level short of maturity; e.g., “She is anally fixated” (controlling, stingy, holding onto things and memories).
idealization overestimation of some admired aspect or attribute of another person; e.g., “She was a perfect human being.”
ideas of reference fixed, false ideas and interpretations of external events as though they had direct reference to self; e.g., client thinks that TV news announcer is reporting a story about client.
identification the wish to be like another person; situation in which qualities of another are unconsciously transferred to oneself; e.g., boy identifies with his father and learns to become a man; a woman may fear she will die in childbirth because her mother did; a student adopts attitudes and behavior of her favorite teacher.
introjection incorporation into the personality, without assimilation, of emotionally charged impulses or objects; a quality or an attribute of another person is taken into and made part of self; e.g., a girl in love introjects the personality of her lover into herself - his ideas become hers, his tastes and wishes are hers; this is also seen in severe depression following death of someone close - patient may assume many of deceased’s characteristics; similarly, working in a psychiatric unit with a suicidal person brings out depression in the nurse.
isolation temporary or long-term splitting off of certain feelings or ideas from others; separating emotional and intellectual content; e.g., talking emotionlessly about a traumatic accident.
projection attributes and transfers own feelings, attitudes, impulses, wishes, or thoughts to another person or object in the environment, especially when ideas or impulses are too painful to be acknowledged as belonging to oneself; e.g., in hallucinations and delusions by alcoholics; or, “I flunked the course because the teacher doesn’t know how to teach”; “I hate him” reversed into “He hates me"; or a student impatiently accusing an instructor of being intolerant.
rationalization justification of behavior by formulating a logical, socially approved reason for past, present, or proposed behavior. Commonly used, conscious or unconscious, with false or real reason; e.g., after losing a class election, a student states that she really did not want all the extra work and is glad she lost.
reaction formation going to the opposite extreme from what one wishes to do or is afraid one might do; e.g., being overly concerned with cleanliness when one wishes to be messy, being an overly protective mother through fear of own hostility to child, or showing great concern for a person whom you dislike, going out of your way to do special favors.
regression when individuals fail to solve a problem with the usual methods at their command they may resort to modes of behavior that they have outgrown but that proved successful at an earlier stage of development; retracing developmental steps; going back to earlier interests or modes of gratification; e.g., a senior nursing student about to graduate becomes dependent on a clinical instructor for directions.
repression involuntary exclusion of painful and unacceptable thoughts and impulses from awareness. Forgetting these things solves the situation by not solving it; e.g., by not remembering what was on the difficult exam after it was over.
sublimation channeling a destructive or instinctual impulse that cannot be realized into a socially acceptable, practical, and less dangerous outlet, with some relation to the original impulse for emotional satisfaction to be obtained; e.g., sublimation of sexual energy into other creative activities (art, music, literature) or hostility and aggression into sports or business competition; or an infertile person putting all energies into pediatric nursing.
substitution when individuals cannot have what they wish and accept something else in its place for symbolic satisfaction; e.g., pin-up pictures in absence of sexual object, or a person who failed an RN exam signs up for an LVN/LPN exam.
suppression a deliberate process of blocking from the conscious mind thoughts, feelings, acts, or impulses that are undesirable; e.g., “I don’t want to talk about it,” “Don’t mention his name to me,” or “I’ll think about it some other time”; or willfully refusing to think about or discuss disappointment with exam results.
symbolism sign language that stands for related ideas and feelings, conscious and unconscious. Used extensively by children, primitive peoples, and psychotic patients. There is meaning attached to this sign language that makes it very important to the individual; e.g., a student wears dark, somber clothing to the exam site.
undoing a coping mechanism against anxiety, usually unconscious, designed to negate or neutralize a previous act; e.g., Lady Macbeth’s attempt to wash her hands (of euilt) after the murder. A repetitious, symbolic acting out, in reverse of an unacceptable act already completed. Responsible for compulsions and magical thinking.