health
Followers of Villains
By Fanny Wancier Karfinkiel - [email protected]

TL;DR
- Mechanisms are systems for transmitting movement and energy, also applied in psychology to understand unconscious mental processes.
- Anna Freud pioneered the study of defense mechanisms, describing them as protective filters used by children against distress and trauma.
- Common defense mechanisms include repression, denial, projection, displacement, rationalization, reactive formation, and sublimation.
- Identification with the aggressor is a distinct defense mechanism cultivated in environments of aggression and abuse.
- This mechanism involves victims adopting the ideas and actions of their aggressors to control fear, anxiety, and perceived threats, creating a protective shell.
- Individuals and groups may fervently support tyrants, unconsciously identifying with them to protect themselves and appear tough, despite it masking unprocessed pain.