Psychodynamic and Humanistic Theories of Personality

AP Psychology· difficulty 3/5

Mechanism Description Repression Banishing thoughts from consciousness Projection Attributing one's impulses to others Rationalization Self-justifying explanations Reaction formation Acting opposite to true feelings Displacement Redirecting impulses to safer target Freudian defense mechanisms

A man furious at his boss yells at his dog instead. Which mechanism in the table fits best?

  • A

    Reaction formation

  • B

    Projection

  • C

    Repression

  • D

    Displacement

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Explanation

Displacement involves redirecting an impulse from a threatening target (the boss) onto a less threatening one (the dog), exactly as the table defines.

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