A mother who has deep-seated hostility toward her only child but shows overprotection and hyperconcern for the physical well-being of her child illustrates which Freudian defense mechanism?

Question

BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

In examining the vignette, we look at how the defense mechanisms relate to the mother's attitude and behavior toward her child.
Option 1: Identification - this involves adopting characteristics or behaviors of another person, often to feel closer to them or to gain status. The scenario does not describe the mother taking on the child’s traits or modeling herself after the child, so identification is not a good fit.
Option 2: Reaction formation - this is when an individual disguises or inverts an unwanted impulse by presenting its opposite. Here, the mother harbors hostility but covers it with overprotection and intense concern for the child’s physical safety, which is a classic example of displaying the opposite emotional stance to mask the true hostile feeling.
Option 3: Projection - this defense mechanism involves attributing one's own unacceptable thoughts or feelings to someone else, effectively externalizing them. The description does not indicate the mother accusing the child or others of her own hostility, so projection doesn’t align well with the given pattern.
Option 4: Displacement - this entails shifting emotional energy from the original target to a safer or more acceptable one. While overprotectiveness could be seen as redirecting distress, the core conflict here is the masking of hostility with overconcern, rather than simply moving feelings to a different target.
Overall, the behavior pattern in the prompt most closely aligns with reaction formation, where an uncomfortable inner impulse is counteracted by an exaggerated contrary behavior, producing the paradox of hostility expressed as protective vigilance.

A mother who has deep-seated hostility toward her only child but shows overprotection and hyperconcern for the physical well-being of her child illustrates which Freudian defense mechanism?

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