The 10 Unconscious Defense Mechanisms by Nina Bingham

Are your unconscious defense mechanisms sabotaging your relationships? Are unconscious belief systems running your life? Sigmund Freud’s defense mechanisms of the unconscious mind are still hard at work in each of us: shaping our cognition, behavior and beliefs, without our knowledge of them acting upon us. We can learn to become aware of them, thereby making us more successful in all areas of our lives: more self-aware, self-monitoring, and perceived by loved ones and coworkers as friendlier and more approachable. Being able to “decode” your own thoughts and emotions will enable you to diffuse misunderstandings before they begin, and open the way for happier, healthier, more successful inter-personal and professional relationships.

The Unconscious: Beneath the surface of our conscious thoughts and feelings lurks the mysterious world of the subconscious, like the deepest depths of the unseen ocean, waiting to be explored. Our conscious mind has been compared to the tip of an iceberg, while  beneath the surface of the water is the unconscious, where 80% of the iceberg is found. When we become aware of the unconscious’s purpose, which is to defend us, we see how the mechanism of the unconscious has a powerful, profound affect on our daily happiness and most powerfully, our relationships. Psychology knows much about the conscious thought processes of the brain, but are at a decided disadvantage when attempting to measure unconscious thought, for it is exactly that: not apparent, not evident, not voluntary, and therefore, immeasurable by science (unless the subject is unaware that he is being monitored). Unconscious thought is innate and uncontrollable. If this type of thinking and feeling is unnoticeable to us, like the  microcosm of life found only under a microscope, why concern ourselves with it? Because it is making 80% of our decisions. The unconscious mechanism of the brain is running on “automatic pilot.” Wouldn’t it be good for your conscious mind to get behind the wheel a little?

This article is designed to introduce you to the idea of increased self-awareness so you can respond, instead of react to life’s triggering events, or even life‘s little “hiccups.” By being able to identify Freud’s Defense Mechanisms in yourself, you will be more aware of when yours, and others defenses are popping up, and can learn defuse and escape unwanted thoughts and behaviors. Unconscious thoughts and feelings influence not only our reactions to others, but our choices, which can be life-altering. When we look back at portions of our personal history with regret or resentment, or when we have loved ones whom we have distanced ourselves from, we can be sure that we were at the mercy of our unconscious defense mechanism’s interference. Or, someone elses defense mechanisms stood between us getting what we really wanted, and what we actually got. Defense mechanisms can steal our joy, vitalness, productivity, and excitement about life, and can torpedo old, and especially new, vulnerable inter-personal relationships. However, once we have learned about them, we can transform the quality of our lives by waking up to “automatic” thinking, and get intelligent about creating the life and love we deserve. There’s a lot riding on your unconscious. Shall we take a look under the hood, so to speak? 

 Freud's 9 Mechanisms:

Mechanism #1: Denial. Denial and suppression are characterized by having a conscious awareness at some level, but simply denying the reality of the experience by pretending it is not there. Denial protects us by shielding us (even momentarily) from the pain of life. It is an insulator. It maintains our emotional equilibrium. It also allows us to be productive despite feelings of pain and even trauma, which is why this mechanism is listed first in this book. The most widely used defense mechanism. When we are in denial, we implicitly feel we are too weak to face the bad news, so we “run.” We distract ourselves with something else. When there are problems between couples, the person in denial may throw himself into his work instead of dealing with the problem in his relationship. Or typically loved ones of terminal patients will stay in denial, even after the loved one has passed on. Denial is the first step towards healing in the 4-step grieving process. Classic example: denial of codependents in dysfunctional relationships.

Mechanism #2: Rationalization. This defense simply involves making excuses to defend behavior. Classic example: late for work.

Mechanism # 3: Intellectualization. This defense is similar to rationalization, but instead of making an excuse for a problem, it turns the problem into a thought issue instead of an emotional one. The thoughts become prominent, but the emotions are suppressed. Classic example: Mr. Spock.

Mechanism #4-Displacement. The reassignment of aggression from someone who is not safe for us to target with our anger, to a scapegoat who we feel is safe to direct our anger towards. Classic examples: teens and parents, kick the dog when you’ve had a bad day at work.

Mechanism #5-Projection. Attributing your own unacceptable impulses to someone else. The impulses are still judged unacceptable but they belong to someone else, not you. Classic example: cheating partner will be suspicious of non-cheating partner.

Mechanism #6-Reaction Formation. Refusal to acknowledge unwanted traits, thoughts or feelings to the point of denying thoughts, ands convincing yourself you are not one of “them.” Classic example: homophobia.

Mechanism #7-Sublimation. Suppression of aggression so it has a more acceptable outlet. Classic example: contact sports: football, boxing, wrestling, and sex.
A “safety valve” for our frustrations and aggression.

Mechanism #8-Regression. A movement back in developmental time to when a person felt safe and secure. Often, that is childhood. Classic example: mid-life crisis.

Mechanism #9-Repression. The cornerstone of Freud’s personality theory. The unconscious total sublimation of pain due to abuse or trauma. Example: Amnesia.

Mechanism #10-Transferrance. Although Freud did not list this mechanism, it's a powerful one. Next to denial, second most common defense mechanism. We transfer or transpose old experiences onto our current situation. Example: In inter-personal relationships, we might unconsciously assign feelings and beliefs from the past onto our present relationships. Transference is when we react vehemently to someone because by physical resemblance or personality they remind us of someone else.

Conclusion: According to Freud, the ego has developed defense mechanisms to cover for the wild demands of the Id (which would rarely be socially acceptable). Evolutionary psychology agrees, by stating that men and women’s innate motivations are unconscious drives which perpetuate the species, and therefore influence behavior and choices. Defenses are not “bad,” they are necessary to protect us. However, if unaware of them, the unconscious begins to create our lives, instead of us consciously creating it.