DEFENCE MECHANISMS

(ADJUSTMENT MECHANISMS)
SNEHA SABU
NATURAL SCIENCE
● A defence mechanism is an unconscious
psychological strategy adopted by the
individual to tackle a frustrating situation.
● It may be defined as an individual to achieve
satisfaction of need indirectly, it reducing
tension maintaining self respect.
● This helps reducing tensions and assists the
individual in maintaining self respect.
● It is way to behave or think to protect or
defend our serves from anxiety
● According to Sigmund freud says defence
mechanism as a way of protecting against
anxiety
THE IMPORTANT ADJUSTMENT MECHANISMS
ADOPTED BY SCHOOL CHILDRENS ARE THE
FOLLOWING :-
1.Aggression
2.Compensation
3.Identification
4.Projection
5.Rationalism
6.Negativism
7.Withdrawal
8.Regression
1.AGGRESION

● Agression Refers to forceful attacking activity that can be in the

form of either physical, verbal or symbolic or all the three
● It arises from frustation where the individual attempts to hurt
or distroy the source of frustation
● For Example:-
The boy who is insulted by his friend atrack him physically.
● There are two types of aggresion
1.Extrapunitive
2.Intrapunitive
● Extrapunitive - the individual aggresively attributes
frustation to another person or object
● Intrapunitive- the individual attributes frustation to
himself
● Role of the teacher :-
a) Teacher should not repress all hostile and aggressive
feelings of the child as it lead to anxiety and neurosis.
The child may be permitted occasionaly to express his
resentment frankly and the teacher should be
empathetic to him and assure him justice by
considering his feelings at the face value
 b) Help the child to adopt socially acceptable channels such as
athletic contests,finger painting, dramatic plays etc..For
relieving feelings.This will provide individual with
oppurtunities for venting the aggression or getting it out of
one's system.
C) Another approach to the control of aggresion is based on
the notion that certain emotions and feelings are incompactable
with anger and aggresion.
2.COMPENSATION

● This is a mechanism in which an individual tries to

balance or cover-up his deficiency in one field by
exhibiting his strength in another field.
● People overacheive in one area to compensate for
failures in another.
● Eg:- Students who does not have an interest in
studies may process high intrest in sports.
● Role of a teacher:-
a. The teacher should help pupils find activities in
which they can exel and thus compensate for
weakness they may possess.
b. Teacher should help the child in selecting socially
approved compensatory activities rather than those
arouse disapproval.
c. Acadamic pursuit may be encouraged as a
compensatory device for handicapped children so
that may come out as successful individuals in future.
d. Provide diverse co- curricular activities in the
school so that some deviant children may adopt any of
these as a mean to compensative their short comings.
 3.IDENTIFICATION

● Identification consists of adopting the feelings, attitudes, and

achievemts of others as one's own.
● Here an individual seeks satisfaction in associating himself
in some way with the success of others.
● Attempting to justify one's behavior by presenting reason
that sound logical.
● For Eg:- To hide his own failures, a children a student may
identify themselves with their parents, films stars, cricket
players or political leaders.
● Role of teacher:-
a) Identification acts as a powerful dynamism in the
formation of personality and character.
So the teacher, by providing worthwhile models in the form
of national leaders, personages in literature and science and
appropriate school traditions, can do much to assist pupils
in making proper identifications.
b) The teacher himself should be an exemplary model of
socially approved behaviour for children to identify and
imitate.
c) Direct the identifying behaviour of children to the sucess
and achievements of the nation and thus breeding
patriotism, spirit of sacrifice, and other national value in
them.
d) The teacher should be watchful to see that's the
identifying behaviour of the adolescents are not being
exploited by any anti- social groups or people with vested
interests.
4.PROJECTION

● Projection is the mechanism through which the

indivual preceives in others, the undesirable motives
and traits which he himself possess.
● This is the most common defense mechanism by Wich
the individual judges others by himself
● For example a dishonest person assumes that all
others are dishonest Accusing others for one's own
fault is another kind of projection
● When an inefficient teacher blames the students for
their low achievement she is using projection as a
defense mechanism.
● In the garden of Eden Adam blamed Eve and Eve
blamed the snake making use of this defense
mechanism
● Thus in projection an individual puts the blame of his
own failure upon the shoulderd of others or upon
unfavorable factors in his environment
RATIONALISATION

• This is a face saving device by which individual

justifies his short coming, failure and incompetence by
giving false reasons
• Excuse making process
Eg; a boy fails in math's make use of a rationalization
when he says the questions were out of syllabus
▶ 2 forms
▶ A) sour grapism
Something we cannot get becomes something we did
not want anyway
Eg; failure to qualify UGC, one might say, was a
blessing as there a lot of unemployed UGC holders
▶ B) sweet lemonism
Attitude that what is already achieved is better than
something that is usually considered more desirable by
others
Eg; a highly qualified person who could secure only a
teachers job, though personally disappointed, may say
how happy he is with the job